The Supreme Court has issued a directive to all High Courts across India to constitute the Committee for Service Conditions of the District Judiciary (CSCDJ) as per the guidelines set forth in the All India Judges Association case in January 2024. The order, issued on Tuesday, January 21, aims to address and resolve the grievances of judicial officers concerning the implementation of the Second National Judges Pay Commission (SNJPC).
A bench led by Justice BR Gavai, alongside Justices Augustine George Masih and K Vinod Chandran, made this decision following a report from Senior Advocate K Paremeshwar, the amicus curiae in the matter. The report highlighted that several High Courts had not yet established their CSCDJs, and those that had were not convening regular meetings. This lack of action has led to a surge in applications from judicial officers directly to the Supreme Court, seeking redress for their individual grievances.
The Supreme Court emphasized the importance of these committees in reducing the burden of individual petitions to the apex court. The bench stated, “We therefore request all the High Courts to implement the directions issued by this Court by order dated 04.01.2024. If the CSCDJs are not appointed so far by any of the High Courts, the same shall be appointed within a period of four weeks from today.”
Further directives include the appointment of Nodal Officers, who must be retired District Judges, within the same four-week timeframe. These officers are to be given office space within the High Court premises and a monthly remuneration of Rs 75,000, in addition to their pension. The Court also stipulated that these Nodal Officers should periodically visit different benches of the High Courts to address the grievances of judicial officers in those locations, with travel expenses to be covered by the State Governments.
The CSCDJs are required to meet every three months, at most, and the decisions made regarding individual grievances must be enacted by the respective State Governments within three months of each decision. Judicial officers who are dissatisfied with the outcomes or the implementation thereof have the right to appeal directly to the High Court.
The Supreme Court’s Registrar General has been tasked with forwarding this order to the Chief Secretaries of all States and Union Territories, as well as to the Registrar Generals of all High Courts, ensuring widespread compliance and implementation.
The establishment of the CSCDJs is expected to streamline the grievance resolution process for India’s district judiciary, significantly easing the procedural burdens currently faced by the Supreme Court.
