Need to protect judiciary from ‘unwarranted pressures’, 21 former judges tell CJI Chandrachud

A group of 21 retired judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts on Sunday wrote a letter to Chief Justice DY Chandrachud emphasising the need to protect India’s judiciary from “unwarranted pressures”.

The former justices alleged that the judiciary is facing “escalating attempts by certain factions” to undermine it “through calculated pressure, misinformation and public disparagement”.

These factions are allegedly motivated by narrow political interests and personal gains and hope to erode public confidence in the courts, said the letter.

The group, including former judges Deepak Verma, Krishna Murari, Dinesh Maheshwari and MR Shah, did not cite any specific instance that prompted them to write the letter. This comes amid allegations of judicial coercion by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and Opposition parties against each other.

The group also alleged that there have been “clear attempts to sway judicial processes by casting aspersions on the integrity of courts and judges”.

21 former judges (4 former Supreme Court and 17 former HC judges) write to Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud on the "need to safeguard judiciary from unwarranted pressures".

They say there are "escalating attempts by certain factions to undermine the judiciary through… pic.twitter.com/3xjd9GlFYa— Live Law (@LiveLawIndia) April 15, 2024

“Such actions not only disrespect the sanctity of our judiciary but also pose a...

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