Prasad hits back at Cong. chief
Says Rahul’s team again failed him by not seeing record judges’ appointments
Two days after Congress president Rahul Gandhi targeted him by alleging that the judiciary was collapsing under his watch, Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad hit back on Sunday with statistics to show that the NDA government had made the highest number of judicial appointments since Independence.
He, however, did not reply to the specific charge of delaying the elevation of K.M. Joseph, Chief Justice of the Uttarakhand High Court, and Indu Malhotra from the Bar as Supreme Court judges.
Mr. Prasad tweeted, “Mr. Rahul Gandhi, maintaining your track record, your team has failed you once again by not doing their homework. Average appointments of High Court Judges under UPA-1 was 86 per year, and in UPA-2 it was 79 per year. Under NDA it has been 109 per year.”
Mr. Prasad said that in 2016, a record 126 High Court judges were appointed, the highest since Independence. Since May 2014, the NDA government appointed 17 Supreme Court and 326 High Court judges and made 304 additional judges permanent. A total of 173 posts of High Court judges were created against the 20 created by the UPA-2 government.
Infrastructure building
He said the NDA government, since 2014, had spent more on building infrastructure for the subordinate judiciary than in the previous 20 years. While it spent ₹2,655 crore on the lower judiciary, ₹3,444 crore was the expenditure under the head between 1993 and 2014.
On Friday, Mr. Gandhi said the Law Minister was “busy peddling fake news” while key appointments were on hold. “Justice K.M. Joseph overturned President’s rule in Uttarakhand in 2016. When his name was proposed for the Supreme Court, Modiji’s ego was hurt. Approval of over 100 judges, cleared for the Supreme Court and various High Courts, are now on hold,” he tweeted.
The Congress and Mr. Prasad, who holds the Information Technology portfolio, have been engaged in a war of words over the past week. After the Minister accused the Congress of having used the services of the disgraced data firm Cambridge Analytica, the party accused him of spinning “fake news”.
“Mr. Rahul Gandhi, the notice given to Cambridge Analytica for Data Manipulation has naturally worried you. Angry, frustrated and apprehensive, you are now dragging the judiciary. Deeply reprehensible,” Mr. Prasad said.
Two days after Congress president Rahul Gandhi targeted him by alleging that the judiciary was collapsing under his watch, Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad hit back on Sunday with statistics to show that the NDA government had made the highest number of judicial appointments since Independence.
He, however, did not reply to the specific charge of delaying the elevation of K.M. Joseph, Chief Justice of the Uttarakhand High Court, and Indu Malhotra from the Bar as Supreme Court judges.
Mr. Prasad tweeted, “Mr. Rahul Gandhi, maintaining your track record, your team has failed you once again by not doing their homework. Average appointments of High Court Judges under UPA-1 was 86 per year, and in UPA-2 it was 79 per year. Under NDA it has been 109 per year.”
Mr. Prasad said that in 2016, a record 126 High Court judges were appointed, the highest since Independence. Since May 2014, the NDA government appointed 17 Supreme Court and 326 High Court judges and made 304 additional judges permanent. A total of 173 posts of High Court judges were created against the 20 created by the UPA-2 government.
Infrastructure building
He said the NDA government, since 2014, had spent more on building infrastructure for the subordinate judiciary than in the previous 20 years. While it spent ₹2,655 crore on the lower judiciary, ₹3,444 crore was the expenditure under the head between 1993 and 2014.
On Friday, Mr. Gandhi said the Law Minister was “busy peddling fake news” while key appointments were on hold. “Justice K.M. Joseph overturned President’s rule in Uttarakhand in 2016. When his name was proposed for the Supreme Court, Modiji’s ego was hurt. Approval of over 100 judges, cleared for the Supreme Court and various High Courts, are now on hold,” he tweeted.
The Congress and Mr. Prasad, who holds the Information Technology portfolio, have been engaged in a war of words over the past week. After the Minister accused the Congress of having used the services of the disgraced data firm Cambridge Analytica, the party accused him of spinning “fake news”.
“Mr. Rahul Gandhi, the notice given to Cambridge Analytica for Data Manipulation has naturally worried you. Angry, frustrated and apprehensive, you are now dragging the judiciary. Deeply reprehensible,” Mr. Prasad said.