Gopal Subramanium segregation has failed to die down, when again with the fresh report on the Chief Justice of India Justice RM Lodha, who was quoted in the media saying on Tuesday that former Solicitor General's segregation was unilaterally done by government without his knowledge and consent.
The statement by Justice RM Lodha could well be construed as expressing disappointment with the way things were handled by the BJP-led NDA government, the CJI maintained that the independence of judiciary would never be compromised. Again the CJI was also not happy about the fact that
Subramanium had gone “public with his grievances when he was abroad.”
Gopal Subramanium's name had been recommended for appointment to the Supreme Court bench by its collegium along with three others, Chief Justices of Calcutta and Odisha High Courts Arun Mishra and Adarsh Kumar Goyal respectively and senior advocate Rohinton Nariman.
But Subramanium opted out of being considered for appointment as SC judge after lashing out at the Modi government accusing it of ordering CBI to "scrounge" for "dirt" against him to scuttle his elevation. He had assisted the Supreme Court in the Sohrabuddin fake encounter case in which Amit Shah as amicus curiae,and he suggested that he was being "targeted" because of his independence and integrity.
While the NDA government has its reason to look into the adverse report submitted by IB and CBI on him, but the matter was put to an end in haste by the former SG,Gopal Subramanium, by sending a 9-page letter to the Chief Justice of India RM Lodha withdrawing his consent to be appointed as a judge saying that he did not want his elevation to be "the subject matter of any politicisation".
INDIA HONEST,an hard supporter of transparency in the highest judiciary, wishes that the ethos of judicial system in India should always be above politics .
Here IH has two simple but important and curious questions : a) why Gopal was in so hurry to opt out ? Was he afraid of some present or other reports from the investigative agencies ? Was he afraid that his accusation on BJP for throwing of dirt on him will be rebutted adequately on him on his link to 2G cases ?
The last doubt in the people's mind is that if Gopal was afraid of something during his long association with Congress as solicitor general , particularly in
UPA2, defending them in many difficult scams, that may be tried now ?
b) The second important question relates to the basic temperament of Gopal Subramanium, who had spent a bigger part of his career as debating in either in defence of his clients or the government when accused or indulged in arguments to charge an offence or crime on someone .
And here is the bigger question. Does Gopal Subramanium posses the quality, tranquillity, patience and temperament, that is essentially needed from a wise, cool and the unrelenting mindset of a judge of the highest court of the nation ?
He may be the best from many angles of knowledge, independence and integrity, but what he has shown by throwing towel so fast and indulging in lashing out at the Modi government, the national government, accusing it of ordering CBI to "scrounge" for "dirt" against him to scuttle his elevation ?
No , IH has serious doubts on his suitability as the CJI.