Justice Chelameswar declines to attend his farewell function

Justice J Chelameswar, who is set to retire on June 22, has declined to attend his farewell function, said Vikas Singh, president of the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA).

The executive body of the bar had met Justice Chelameswar last week to invite him for the farewell on May 18, which is the last working day of the Supreme Court before the summer vacation.

Singh said the members of the SCBA's executive committee once again tried to persuade Justice Chelameswar, on Wednesday, to attend the farewell function but the judge did not agree citing personal reasons.

As a tradition, the SCBA holds a function to bid adieu to retiring judges.

The judge is learnt to have told the members of the bar that he did not accept a farewell earlier when he was moving out of the Andhra Pradesh High Court to another high court.

Justice Chelameswar did not attend the court on Wednesday.

He had earlier refused to be part of the Collegium meetings until the minutes and agenda were not given in black and white.

Of the five-judge bench that quashed the National Judicial Appointment Commission Act, he was the lone dissenting judge.

He had questioned the Collegium, why Uttarakhand High Court chief justice K M Joseph was not recommended for elevation to the apex court.

He had earlier also taken exception to the Union government directly writing to the Karnataka High Court chief justice on Collegium's recommendation to elevate a district judge to the High Court.

Justice Chelameswar, the senior most judge, led four supreme court judges in a press conference against Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra to air their grievances on allocation of cases.