Chief Justice D.H. Waghela of the Karnataka High Court on Monday gave vent to his sadness over Justice K.L. Manjunath not being elevated as Chief Justice of a High Court, wondering who would join the judiciary if judges themselves did not get justice.
A function organised to bid farewell to Mr. Justice Manjunath on his retirement saw the judge himself, as well as the Chief Justice, raise questions about the former not being elevated, after some allegations surfaced against him.
Mr. Justice Manjunath’s name was initially considered for the post of Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Addressing judges and members of the Bar, he questioned the manner in which the Supreme Court’s collegium had dealt with the allegations against him at different stages.
Wondering whether a judge could be punished without the nature of the allegations being disclosed to him, he asked how the Supreme Court could keep the file pending for more than 10 months without taking any decision.
He said the collegium should follow the principles of natural justice. “Ultimately, the moral of my story is there is no place for integrity and honesty and there is no justice to a judge in this country,” he said.
Chief Justice Waghela posed the question about judges themselves not getting justice and said, “It is an issue to ponder for all. We need to do introspection.”
He was responding to Karnataka State Bar Council Chairman P.P. Hegde’s remark that the Bar did not get an opportunity to accord a farewell to Justice Manjunath on his elevation.
“It was the darkest day and the most embarrassing moment for me when a glossy magazine was circulated…its contents were not only below contempt but sheer disinformation, [containing] character assassination of a judge, and the credibility of an institution suffered…” said Mr. Justice Waghela.
