Jalandhar/Chandigarh: Reacting strongly to the elevation of Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra as the chief justice of the Punjab and Haryana high court, the Punjab government on Sunday accused the BJP-led Centre of muzzling the state’s federal and constitutional rights. The state government alleged that the Centre bypassed mandatory consultation procedures and ignored the elected state administration during the appointment process.
The meeting was held via video conferencing, with all ministers reportedly instructed to attend. Since most ministers were outside Chandigarh, they were directed to join the virtual proceedings from the offices of the deputy commissioners in their respective districts. In response to the development, chief minister Bhagwant Mann convened an emergency cabinet meeting at 4pm on Sunday to deliberate on the matter and decide on the state’s legal and constitutional strategy.
“The Centre has not provided adequate time to place our views on the recommendations of the Supreme Court’s Collegium. “The chief minister represents the mandate of three crore Punjabis. Ignoring the elected state government is an insult not only to the chief minister but also to the people of Punjab. “I question the central government: Why was Justice Sandhawalia’s appointment delayed despite the Collegium’s recommendation, while the appointment of Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra was processed without consulting the Punjab government? Under the memorandum of procedure (MoP) governing high court judicial appointments, the Union law ministry must obtain the views of the concerned state government after the Supreme Court collegium makes its recommendation. These views form an integral part of the submission forwarded to the Prime Minister, who then advises the President on the appointment. The MoP sets out a specific six-week window for a state government to convey its comments. If no response is received within six weeks, the MoP contains a deemed-consent provision allowing the Union law ministry to presume that the governor and chief minister have no additional input, enabling the Centre to proceed. “The Centre cannot repeatedly interfere in the rights of the states. The Punjab government will strongly raise its voice against any attempt to undermine its constitutional rights and the federal structure.”
According to Paragraph 6 of the memorandum of procedure (MoP) for the appointment of chief justices and judges of high courts, taking the viewpoint and submissions of the chief minister of the concerned state and the elected state government is a mandatory standard procedure before notifying any top judicial appointment. Cheema said that Mann had received formal communications from Punjab governor Gulab Chand Kataria on August 12 and Union minister for law and justice Arjun Ram Meghwal seeking his mandatory opinion on the Collegium’s recommendation.
“It is a sensitive and important issue concerning Punjab and its rights,” Cheema said. “However, surprisingly, the central government issued the notification related to Justice Mishra’s appointment without waiting for CM Mann’s response,” Cheema said. Cheema said. “The Constitution establishes a federal structure in which both the Centre and states have clearly defined powers,” Cheema said.
Addressing a press conference in Jalandhar on Sunday alongside AAP leader Taranpreet Singh Sunny, Punjab finance minister Harpal Singh Cheema, a lawyer by profession, called the move a deliberate attempt to breach constitutional norms.
