Serious view to be taken of any further deviation: CJ
Asked to refrain from unnecessarily visiting HC Judges
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Apr 18: Majority of the Judicial Officers in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and Union Territory of Ladakh are not strictly following the Model Code of Conduct laid down by the Full Court of the High Court with Chief Justice Gita Mittal issuing a warning that serious view will be taken of any further deviation.
The Full Court of the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir in its deliberations held on May 29, 2010 had laid down Model Code of Conduct to be followed strictly by the Subordinate Judicial Officers in connection with the visits of the Chief Justice and the Judges of the High Court.
However, Chief Justice Gita Mittal has observed that Model Code of Conduct is being observed in breach by the Judicial Officers. “It is essential to point out that visits of Judicial Officers to High Court Judges other than for official business is a practice not acceptable in any part of the country”, the Chief Justice has mentioned in a latest circular, the copy of which is available with EXCELSIOR.
She is of the opinion that such visits create an unfair impression of favouritism and lead to a sense of despondency and frustration in the minds of those officers who are inhibited from making these overtures.
“In many High Courts of the country such a practice is considered as a disqualification for considering appointment to leadership positions. Some senior Judges would be inclined to take an adverse view of such conduct while recording Annual Confidential Reports (ACRs) of the officers concerned”, the Chief Justice said while laying stress on discouraging such a practice.
Asking all the Judicial Officers of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and Union Territory of Ladakh to ensure that they conduct themselves with circumspection and restraint, the Chief Justice has made it clear that a serious view will be taken of any further deviation from the Model Code of Conduct.
As per the Model Code of Conduct, the copy of which is available with EXCELSIOR, no Judicial Officer shall receive, see-off or visit the visiting Chief Justice/Judges during the court hours. Instead, a senior non-judicial Administrative Officer will receive and see-off the visiting Chief Justice/Judges during official visits and provide protocol services to them as per norms.
“If the visiting Chief Justice/Judges of the High Court want to hold a meeting or address the Judicial Officers, it will be done either before or after court hours. Moreover, if the visiting Chief Justice/Judges want to call a Judicial Officer for official purposes, the same shall be done either before or after the court hours”, read the Model Code of Conduct.
It has been made clear in the Model Code of Conduct that no Judicial Officer will visit the visiting Chief Justice/Judges unless called for official purposes and no arrangement for any private visit of the Chief Justice/Judges will be made by any Judicial Officer.
“If the arrangements in connection with an official visit of the Chief Justice/Judges are required to be made by the District Judge or the Chief Judicial Magistrate all the bills shall be raised in the name of and the payment shall be made directly by the High Court to the extent permitted under the Rules and personal funds will not be used by any Judicial Officer for the purpose”, read the Model Code of Conduct.
It has further been made clear that no Judicial Officer shall arrange any private trip including any excursion trip or visit to a religious place for the visiting Chief Justice/Judges. Moreover, no Judicial Officer will arrange hotel, food or transport for the visiting Chief Justice/Judge, their staff members and security personnel.
“No Judicial Officer or court servant will offer or provide any gift or hospitality to the Chief Justice/Judges and no function will be organized by Judicial Officers during the visit of Chief Justice/Judges except official functions organized on written directions and at the cost of the Government”, the Model Code of Conduct said.
In the Code, it has explicitly been mentioned that any violation of these instructions will be considered as gross misconduct rendering the concerned Judicial Officer to strict disciplinary action.
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