Delhi HC judge accused of “gross judicial misconduct”; Litigant approaches CJ Murugesan for initiation of enquiry proceedings

Delhi HC judge accused of “gross judicial misconduct”; Litigant approaches CJ Murugesan for initiation of enquiry proceedings

Deepak Khosla, a Noida-based litigant, recently approached the Delhi High Court Chief Justice, alleging “gross judicial misconduct” committed by a sitting judge of the Delhi High Court.  

 

On March 12, 2013, Khosla mentioned the matter in Court No.1 in the Delhi High Court, reading out from a typed out copy that he was seeking to file a complaint against the judge in question. Chief Justice Murugesan directed Khosla to submit the complaint; Khosla subsequently submitted his 91-page complaint to the High Court ‘s Registrar General.

 

The complaint lists amongst other things, “28 counts of judicial misconduct” and “11 criminal offences” allegedly committed by the Judge, and seeks a departmental enquiry into these allegations. The matter relates to an order passed in by the judge in question directing Khosla to be admitted to a mental health institute under police custody on the grounds that Khosla kept disobeying the court orders prohibiting him from recording court proceedings. This order was subsequently stayed by a Division Bench of the High Court, but not before Khosla spent three days in the metal health institute.

 

Apart from the initiation of a departmental enquiry, Khosla has also sought compensation to the tune of Rs. 25 crore to be “recovered jointly and severally” from the Ministry of Law and Justice and “personally” from the judge in question.

 

These acts of the judge are not the only grouse Khosla has against the functioning of the High Court; he has also written to Chief Justice Murugesan to reconsider the proposed elevation of a lawyer to the Delhi High Court. Khosla has claimed that the lawyer in question is currently facing perjury proceedings in the Delhi High Court itself, and hence should not be considered for elevation.

 

Speaking to Bar & Bench, Khosla said that he is either in the process or already has approached the President of India, the Chief Justice of India, the Speaker of the Parliament and the Leader of the Opposition. Khosla says that his goal is to fight the current process of appointing judges, a process which he claims needs a thorough relook.

Source: http://www.barandbench.com/index.php?page=brief&id=3306