It is believed that Rahul nod came on Thursday night after the judgment rejecting the demand for a probe into the death of Mumbai's CBI judge BH Loya.
The Congress-led Opposition had discreetly started gathering signatures of MPs to move an impeachment motion against CJI Dipak Misra in March, when Parliament was in session. But party president Rahul Gandhi sat on the proposal, sensing a division among senior legal luminaries in his party. Sources here said his mother and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi was also not convinced to challenge the authority of one of highest constitutional post in the country. During the session, Congress leader Kapil Sibal and CPM leader Sitaram Yechuri had managed 50 signatures of Rajya Sabha members in a bid to table the motion. The Congress later kept the move on hold after sensing Gandhis' reluctance.
It is believed that Rahul nod came on Thursday night after the judgment rejecting the demand for a probe into the death of Mumbai's CBI judge BH Loya. Those who opposed the impeachment move included P Chidambaram, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Ashwani Kumar and Salman Khurshid, all senior advocates. Asked why the Congress president shed its initial reluctance, a senior leader said: "There is grave concern, and certain judgments deepened the perception of crisis. He has taken the step after a thorough examination of the whole gamut of issues."
Congress leaders also asserted that "there is a consensus" not only within the Congress but also among the friendly parties for impeaching the CJI. Ashwani Kumar had even approached former PM Manmohan Singh, advising him to remain away from the process as it will only help the Modi government in weakening the institution of the Supreme Court. Sibal, however, rejected reports that the former PM had refused to sign.
"It is absolutely false that he (Singh) refused to sign. We didn't involve him intentionally as he is a former PM," he said. On other leaders, he said they didn't sign as they have matters listed in the court. "Yes, some others did not sign as their matters are in the court and we excluded them not to embarrass them," he added. Both Chidambaram and Singhvi are members of the Rajya Sabha who did not sign. Ashwani Kumar and Khurshid are no longer members of Parliament. Khurshid said he was "not privy" to discussions on the impeachment motion. "I am not party to or privy with discussions that have taken place between different parties and for me to reflect specifically on whether the grounds are justified would be unfair," Khurshid said. He added: "Impeachment is too serious a matter to be played with frivolously on the grounds of disagreement with any judgment or point of view of the court."
In the past, Congress had opposed all such proceedings when it was in power. In 1993, Opposition parties brought such a motion first time against Supreme Court judge V Ramaswami on charges of corruption following the report of the inquiry commission. Congress leader Kapil Sibal, put up a spirited defence in favour of Justice Ramaswami in Lok Sabha. He was hired by the judge to defend him behind the bar in the House.
Those who have signed the motion for impeachment motion belonged to the Congress, NCP, CPM, CPI, SP, BSP and RJD. DMK and Trinamool Congress (TMC) MPs did not sign. Senior lawyer Prashant Bhushan had met Mamata Banerjee earlier this month to explain the gravity of the situation. But it seems she was not convinced.
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