India runs the risk of being excluded from a proposal it co-authored at the World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiations, in 2020, to “temporarily waive” intellectual property rights (IPR) held, by primarily Western countries, on vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics for COVID-19.
What is the case?
India and China are two major global suppliers of medicine.
A small group of WTO members was discussing suggestions to exclude drug manufacturers in India and China from prospective waivers to IPR obligations.
IPR obligations are a result of the Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) which WTO members are committed to upholding.
What is the Agreement on TRIPS?
The Agreement on TRIPS is an international legal agreement between all the member nations of the World Trade Organization (WTO).
It establishes minimum standards for the regulation by national governments of different forms of intellectual property (IP) as applied to nationals of other WTO member nations.
TRIPS was negotiated at the end of the Uruguay Round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) between 1989 and 1990 and is administered by the WTO.
It introduced intellectual property law into the multilateral trading system for the first time and remains the most comprehensive multilateral agreement on intellectual property to date.
Key provisions
TRIPS requires member states to provide strong protection for intellectual property rights.
It seeks to provide copyright rights, covering authors and other copyright holders, as well as holders of related rights, namely performers, sound recording producers, and broadcasting organizations.
It provides for geographical indications (GI); industrial designs; integrated circuit layout designs; patents; new plant varieties; trademarks; trade names and undisclosed or confidential information.
It also specifies enforcement procedures, remedies, and dispute resolution procedures.
TRIPS also has a most favored nation (MFN) clause.
Why TRIPS?
The obligations of the main international agreements of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) that already existed before the WTO was created:
Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property (patents, industrial designs, etc)
Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (copyright).
Some areas are not covered by these agreements. In some cases, the standards of protection prescribed were thought inadequate.
So the TRIPS Agreement adds significantly to existing international standards.
What else is covered under TRIPS Agreement?
Copyright terms must extend at least 50 years unless based on the life of the author.
Computer programs must be regarded as “literary works” under copyright law and receive the same terms of protection.
Patents must be granted for “inventions” in all fields of technology and must be enforceable for at least 20 years.
Tamil Nadu CM has charged that the Governor that he had failed to perform the duty vested in him by the Constitution when it came to deciding on the Bill adopted in the Legislative Assembly against the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET).
What is the issue?
The Governor had returned the Bill to the Assembly Speaker instead of forwarding it for Presidential assent.
Constitutional Powers of the Governor
Article 154: The executive power of the state shall be vested in the
governor and shall be exercised by him either directly or through
officers subordinate to him in accordance with this Constitution.
Article 163 (1): There shall be a council of ministers with the chief minister as the head to aid and advise the governor in the exercise of his functions, except in so far as he is required to exercise his functions in his discretion.
Article 163 (2): If any question arises whether a matter falls within the governor’s discretion or not, the decision of the governor is final and the validity of anything done by him cannot be called in question on the ground that he ought or ought not to have acted in his discretion.
The governor has constitutional discretion in the following cases:
a) Reservation of a bill for the consideration of the President (Articles 200 and 201).
b) Recommendation for the imposition of the President’s Rule in the state (Article 356).
c) While exercising his functions as the administrator of an adjoining Union territory (in case of an additional charge).
d) Special responsibility in 5th and 6th schedule areas.
e) Seeking information from the chief minister with regard to the administrative and legislative matters of the state.
Also, the governor has situational discretion (i.e., the hidden discretion derived from the exigencies of a prevailing political situation) in the following cases:
a) Appointment of the chief minister when no party has a clear-cut majority in the state legislative assembly or when the chief minister in office dies suddenly and there is no obvious successor.
b) Dismissal of the council of ministers when it cannot prove the confidence of the state legislative
assembly.
c) Dissolution of the state legislative assembly if the council of ministers has lost its majority.
What are the Legislative Powers of Governor?
Governor summons the sessions of both houses of the state legislature and prorogues them.
The governor can even dissolve the State Legislative Assembly.
These powers are formal and the governor’s use of these powers must comply with the advice of the Council of Ministers headed by the Chief Minister.
He addresses the first session of the state legislature after the general elections in the state.
Appointments to the legislature
He appoints 1/6th members of the State Legislative Council in states wherever there is a bicameral legislature.
He nominates one member in the state legislative assembly from the Anglo-Indian Community if in view; the community is not well represented.
Governor is empowered under Article 192 to disqualify a member of the State legislature when the election commission recommends that the legislator is no longer complying with provisions of Article 191.
Passing of Bills
All the bills passed by the state legislatures are sent to the Governor for assent.
Once a bill is sent to Governor for assent, he can:
a) Give assent to the bill
b) Withhold the assent
c) Return the bill to the legislature for reconsideration if it is not a money bill.
d) If the bill is re-passed by the legislature with or without amendment, the governor has to give assent to the bill.
e) Reserve the bill for consideration of the President.
When is the Bill sent to the President?
This is done under the circumstances when a bill:
Violates the constitution or against directive principles of state policy (DPSP)
Conflict with union powers
Against the larger interest of the country and people
May endanger the position of the high court in the state.
Ordinance making power
When the state legislature is not in session and the governor considers it necessary to have a law, then the governor can promulgate ordinances.
These ordinances are submitted to the state legislature at its next session.
They remain valid for no more than six weeks from the date the state legislature is reconvened unless approved by it earlier.
Others
As per Articles 165 and 177, Governor can ask the Advocate General to attend the proceedings of both houses of the state legislature and report to them any unlawful functioning if any.
Concerns with the role of governor
Misuse of discretionary powers: States allege that this provision has often been misused by the governor who acts on the behest of the union government which is opposed to the basic scheme of the Indian Constitution.
Appointment by centre: This often leads to the appointment of persons aligning with the party’s ideology to the post of Governor and he/she remains faithful to the Union government of the day rather than acting on the advice of the State Executive.
Arbitrary removal: Even after Supreme Court Judgement in B.P. Singhal v. Union of India calling for a fixed tenure for Governors to encourage neutrality and fairness in the discharge of their duties, it is not being implemented on the ground.
Ahead of the World Economic Forum’s Davos Agenda, Oxfam International presented its annual global Inequality Report titled ‘Inequality Kills’ which presented the quantum growth in wealth of a minuscule few, and the simultaneous impoverishment of millions of working people. The findings of the report remain dismal for India as well.
The report discussed India’s governance structures that promote wealth accumulation by a few and fail to provide safety nets to the rest of the population.
What is the “Inequality Kills” Report?
“Inequality Kills: The unparalleled action needed to combat unprecedented inequality in the wake of COVID-19” is a report released in January 2022 by Oxfam, a U.K.-based consortium.
The report argues for sustained and immediate action to end the pandemic, address global inequality and initiate concerted measures to tackle the climate emergency.
The central argument of the report is that inequality is a death sentence for people that are marginalized by social and economic structures and removed from political decision-making.
Constitutional Provisions to Tackle Inequality There is a constitutional mandate in India to reduce inequality – Articles 38 and 39 of the Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP) mandate a policy path. Article 38(1): “The State shall strive to promote the welfare of the people by securing and protecting as effectively as it may a social order in which justice, social, economic and political, shall inform all the institutions of national life.” Article 39 (c): The State shall, in particular, direct its policy towards ensuring that the operation of the economic system does not result in the concentration of wealth and means of production to the common detriment.
What are the key highlights of the report?
Inequality: a death sentence: The central argument of the report is that inequality is a death sentence for people that are marginalised by social and economic structures and removed from political decision making.
A new billionaire created every 26 hours since the pandemic began: The world’s 10 richest men have doubled their fortunes, while over 160 million people are projected to have been pushed into poverty.
Meanwhile, an estimated 17 million people have died from COVID-19—a scale of loss not seen since the Second World War.
Covid-19 effect: The wealth of the 10 richest men has doubled, while the incomes of 99% of humanity are worse off, because of COVID-19.
The 10 richest men in the world own more than the bottom 3.1 billion people. If the 10 richest men spent a million dollars each a day, it would take them 414 years to spend their combined wealth.
Vaccine Apartheid: It identifies “vaccine apartheid” (unequal access to vaccines between countries) and the lack of universal vaccination programs in many countries as a cause of the emergence of multiple new strains of the coronavirus that has led to the continuation of the pandemic.
Government expenditure resulting into inflation: It also demonstrates how emergency government expenditure (estimated at $16 trillion) that was meant to keep economies afloat during this crisis, inflated stock prices.
This resulted in billionaires’ collective wealth increasing by $5 trillion during the pandemic.
A 99% windfall tax on the COVID-19 wealth gainsof the 10 richest men could pay to make enough vaccines for the entire world and fill financing gaps in climate measures, universal health and social protection, etc.
What Does The Report Say About India?
Inequality of Wealth: During the Covid-19 pandemic, the report reveals –
more than half the world’s new poor are from India,
84% Indian households have suffered a loss of income,
with 4.6 crore people falling into extreme poverty
In this period, the richest 142 people have more than doubled their wealth to more than ₹53 lakh-crore.
And India’s top 10 per cent had around 45 per cent of the country’s total national wealth in 2020. Imposing tax on the rich in India can take care of vital public services like health and education.
Decline in Social Security Expenditure: As Covid continued to ravage India, the country’s healthcare budget saw a 10% decline from RE (Revised Estimates) of 2020-21.
The budgetary allocation for social security schemesdeclined from 1.5% of the total Union budget to 0.6%.
Increasing Fiscal Deficit:Lowering corporate taxes from 30% to 22% to attract investment last year (2020) resulted in a loss of Rs 1.5 lakh crore, which contributed to the increase in India’s fiscal deficit.
Imposing a 4 per cent tax on 98 wealthiest families in the country can look after –
the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare for more than two years,
the Mid-Day Meal Programme for 17 years or
the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan for six years
The report also revealed that one-third of respondents with a ration was were not able to buy ration at a PDS outlet.
What are the factors of inequality?
Budgetary Decline: India is one of the few countries in the world where during the Covid pandemic the health Budget has declined — and that too by a huge 10% in 2021.
Social security expenditure has declined from an already low 1.5% in 2020-21 to 0.6% of the Union Budget in 2021-22. People are deprived of the most basic services and entitlements and are unable to survive.
Inequality in Salaries and Allowances: Social security pensions, for the elderly, for the disabled, and widows have been frozen at ₹200-₹300 a month for almost 15 years. However, in contrast, there has been an increment in the salaries and pensions of the policymakers.
The increase for one crore central government employees and pensioners has cost the exchequer more than the total social security pension budget for 3.3 crore beneficiaries.
Unavailability of Subsidized Food grain: The priority list of households under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) has been frozen in absolute numbers, based on a percentage determined from the 2011 Census.
In the last 11 years, population increases amounting to approximately 10 crore eligible beneficiaries have been kept out.
Therefore, approximately 12% legally entitled people — even children of existing “priority households” — cannot get subsidized foodgrain.
Unequal Access to Education: The pandemic has also produced a generation of children who have forgotten what formal education is. Many teenagers from poor households have already joined the workforce.
In this period, there has been a 6% cut in the education Budget. Relying on online teaching, accompanied by Budget cuts, amounts to the institutionalization of endemic multidimensional poverty.
How does the report propose to rectify global inequality?
The “Inequality Kills” report proposes far-reaching changes to structures of government, economy, and policymaking to fight inequality.
It urgently asks for “vaccine recipes” to be made open source so that every qualified vaccine manufacturer can manufacture them.
In doing so the report asks for monopolies over vaccines held by pharmaceutical giants and anchored in place through the World Trade Organisation, to end.
The report then asks for governments to “claw” back the wealth from billionaires by administering solidarity taxes higher than 90% especially on the billionaires that have profited during and because of the pandemic.
In addition to this, the report asks for permanent cancellation of tax havens, progressive taxation on corporations and an end to tax dodging by corporations.
The report then suggests that all of this regained wealth be redirected towards building income safety nets, universalising healthcare for everyone, investing in green technologies and democratising them, and, investing in protecting women from violence.
Finally, the report advocates for redistributing power along with wealth by strengthening workers’ unions, boosting political representation of marginalised groups, and asserting human rights.
Change rules and shift power in the economy and society: Governments must rewrite the rules within their economies that create such colossal divides, and act to pre-distribute income, change laws, and redistribute power in decision-making and power in the economy.
That includes ending sexist laws, including those which mean that nearly 3 billion women are legally prevented from having the same choice of jobs as men.
It must include tackling the barriers to representation for women, racialized groups, and working-class people. Women still make up only 25.5% of parliamentarians globally.
Implications of inequality
Crime and violence: The report identifies higher inequality with more crime and violence and less social trust.
Impact on marginalized: The brunt of inequality and the violence is borne, for instance, by women across the world, Dalits in India, Black, Native American and Latin persons in the US and indigenous groups in many countries.
Victimization of women: Pointing to the example of women, the problem runs a lot deeper as 13 million women have not returned to the workforce and 20 million girls are at risk of losing access to education.
Inequality causes a wide range of health and social problems, from reduced life expectancy and higher infant mortality to poor educational attainment, lower social mobility and increased levels of violence and mental illness.
Societal breakdown: It further leads to a societal breakdown in trust, solidarity and social cohesion, reducing people’s willingness to act for the common good.
For instance, social conflict among the social groups in India, like Patidar unrest and Jaat Andolan.
Denial of basic services: Due to the prevailing inequality in digital access, the digital solutions offered for providing basic services such as health and education face failure.
Environmental degradation: Greater inequality can lead to more rapid environmental degradation because low incomes lead to low investment in physical capital and education
The gap between the top 1% and the bottom 50% is wider for India than the United States, the United Kingdom, China, Russia and France.
What is the pattern of inequality over the years?
During Independence– In the Nehruvian years and after that too, a bid was made to battle the basic absence of social democracy in India, but it remained confined to States and regions.
The Five Year plans contributed to reducing the share of the top 10% who had 50% of the income under colonial rule to 35%-40% in the early decades after Independence.
During economic reforms– Since the mid-1980s, deregulation and liberalisation policies have led to the top 1% majorly profiting from economic reforms whereas the growth among low- and middle-income groups has been relatively slow.
The income of the bottom 50% in India grew at the rate of 2.2% per year between 1951 and 1981, but that the growth rate remained exactly the same over the past 40 years.
Post-2014– India seems to have got into a phase of an even greater reliance on big business and privatisation to fix economics and the latest World Inequality Report concludes that the bottom 50% share has gone down to 13%.
What flaws can be attributed to this?
Moving away from secularisation-The Union government’s now-stated policy to prioritise members of one religion and one language, has severe economic consequences widening the income inequality.
Reverse modernisation– By choosing to reverse the idea of modernisation, linking religion firmly into the public sphere, trying to unmake the modernity, we may be setting ourselves on a narrow path that nations in the world have already arrived at.
One size nation– The quick descent into a one size nation does not fit its much diversity. The state is now fanning systems and principles to further inequalities.
Denial of equality– B.R. Ambedkar had issued a grim warning in 1949 that if we continue to deny social and economic inequality for long, we could blow up the structure of political democracy.
What are the different forms of inequality prevalent in India?
Income and wealth inequality, as mentioned above in the findings of the World Inequality Report.
Digital inequality: According to National Sample Survey (2017), only 6% of rural households and 25% of urban households have a computer. Only 17% in rural areas and 42% in urban areas have access to internet.
Social inequality: It is the differential access to wealth, power, and prestige. Social inequality may exist on gender, race, age, ethnicity, religion, and kinship. This form of inequality is widely prevalent in India.
What are the reasons behind high inequality in India?
The slow economic and GDP growth: GDP growth has been rather slow since the Global Financial Crisis of 2008 and has completely lost its momentum since the start of 2017. For a relatively poor country such as India, the most durable and dependable way to reduce inequality is to increase the size of GDP.
Lack of digital access: Poor households are not able to afford devices to ensure digital access for their children. Most of the rural students could not access online classes, due to lack of devices, shared devices, inability to buy “data packs”, etc.
Increased penetration of technology and industrialization: Some experts argue that as technology is skill biased, so those who are able to use technology experience an increase in productivity and wages compared to their less-skilled counterparts.
The increase in productivity leads to the spread of technology, which, in turn, creates a higher demand for skilled workers. This self-reinforcing cycle increases wealth and income inequality.
Large numbers of the labor force work in sectors with low productivity. Consider agriculture. It provides 53 per cent jobs, while contributing only 17% to the GDP
Way Forward
Multi-Pronged Approach to Tackle Inequality: Programs such as the National Food Security Act must receive the quantum of allocations needed.
Also, the People’s Action for Employment Guarantee (PAEG) has estimated that approximately ₹2,64,000 crore will be needed to guarantee 100 days work for currently active job cards.
The social security pensioners need to be protected from hunger, sickness and poverty. The election season offers an opportunity to fetch the basic rights of the unorganized and vulnerable people.
Gains from Tax: All the governments should immediately tax the gains made by the super-rich during this pandemic period.
Increasing the Reach of Basic Necessities: Given the growing inequality in India, the direction that public policy should now take is evident, there is a need to spread health and education far more widely amidst the population.
By ensuring universal access to public funded high quality services like Public health and education, social security benefits, employment guarantee schemes, inequality can be reduced to a great extent.
Employment Generation: The labor-intensive manufacturing sector of India has the potential to absorb millions of people who are leaving farming while the service sector tends to benefit the urban middle class.
Over 2 crore people who have signed up for the Centre’s portal for unorganised sector workers hold a Graduate Degree.
E-Shram
On August 26, 2021, the Ministry of Labour and Employment (MOLE) launched the E-Shram, the web portal for creating a National Database of Unorganized Workers (NDUW), which will be seeded with Aadhaar.
It seeks to register an estimated 398-400 million unorganized workers and to issue an E-Shram card.
Issues with E-Shram
(A) Time constraints
Long process: Given the gigantic nature of registering each worker, it will be a long-drawn process.
No gestation period: The Government has not mentioned a gestation period to assess its strategy and efficiency.
No hasty process: Employers are or required their workers to register even. While the Government can appeal to them, any penal measure will hurt the ease of doing business.
(B) Pandemic hides
Considering the estimated 380 million workers as the universe of registration — debatable as the novel coronavirus pandemic has pushed lakhs of workers into informality.
(C) Data security
Privacy: One of the vital concerns of e-portals is data security, including its potential abuse especially when it is a mega-sized database.
No national framework yet: There are also media reports pointing out the absence of a national architecture relating to data security.
Local server issues: It has been reported that in some states such as Maharashtra, the server was down for a few days.
(D) Structural issue
Aadhaar seeding: Many workers will not have an Aadhaar-seeded mobile or even a smartphone. Aadhaar-seeding is a controversial issue with political overtones, especially in the North-eastern regions.
Eligibility: There are several issues concerning the eligibility of persons to register as well as the definitional issues.
Exclusion: By excluding workers covered by EPF and ESI, lakhs of contract and fixed-term contract workers will be excluded from the universe of UW. Hazardous establishments employing even a single worker will have to be covered under the ESI, which means these workers also will be excluded.
No benefits for the aged: The NDUW excludes millions of workers aged over 59 from its ambit, which constitutes age discrimination.
(D) Complex identities of workers
Migration: Many are circular migrant workers and they quickly, even unpredictably, move from one trade to another.
Mixed work: Many others perform formal and informal work as some during non-office hours may belong to the gig economy, for example as an Uber taxi or a Swiggy employee. They straddle formal and informal sectors.
Gig workers: Even though MOLE has included gig workers in this process, it is legally unclear whether the gig/platform worker can be classified first as a worker at all.
(E) Other impediments
Dependence on States: The central government will have to depend on the state governments for this project to be successful.
Lack of coordination: In many States, the social dialogue with the stakeholders especially is rather weak or non-existent. The success of the project depends on the involvement of a variety of stakeholders apart from trade unions.
Corruption: There is also the concern of corruption as middle-service agencies such as Internet providers might charge exorbitant charges to register and print the E-Shram cards.
Benefits: No immediate carrot
Workers stand to gain by registration in the medium to long run.
But the instant benefit of accident insurance up to ₹0.2 million to registered workers is surely not an attractive carrot.
The main point of attraction is the benefits they stand to gain during normal and crisis-ridden periods such as the novel coronavirus pandemic now which the Government needs to disseminate properly.
Way forward
E-Shram is a vital system to provide hitherto invisible workers much-needed visibility.
It will provide the Labour Market Citizenship Document to them.
The govt should go one step further for triple linkage for efficient and leakage-less delivery of all kinds of benefits and voices to workers/citizens: One-Nation-One-Ration Card (ONOR), E-Shram Card (especially bank account seeded), and the Election Commission Card.
Last but not least, registrations cannot be a source of exclusion of a person from receiving social assistance and benefits.
In a recent television interview, the Indian Army Chief, General M.M. Naravane, argued that “out of the five or six friction points (in Ladakh), five have been solved”.
Friction points in Ladakh
‘Friction point’ are the points of Chinese ingress into hitherto India-controlled territory in Ladakh, where this control is exercised by the Army and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) through regular patrols to the claimed areas.
These ‘friction points’ are Depsang, Galwan, Hot Springs, Gogra, North bank of Pangong Tso, Kailash Range and Demchok.
By asserting that only one of the friction points is remaining to be resolved — Hot Springs or PP15, Army Chief implicitly ruled out Depsang as an area to be resolved.
This attempt to delink the strategically important area of Depsang from the ongoing Ladakh border crisis is worrying.
Significance of Depsang
Depsang is an enclave of flat terrain located in an area the Army classifies as Sub-Sector North (SSN), which provides land access to Central Asia through the Karakoram Pass.
The Army has always identified Depsang plains as where it finds itself most vulnerable in Ladakh, devising plans to tackle the major Chinese challenge.
SSN’s flat terrain of Depsang, Trig Heights and DBO — which provides direct access to Aksai Chin — is suited for mechanised warfare but is located at the end of only one very long and tenuous communication axis for India.
China, in turn, has multiple roads that provide easy access to the area.
This leaves SSN highly vulnerable to capture by the PLA, with a few thousands of square kilometres from the Karakoram Pass to Burtse, likely to be lost.
Nowhere else in Ladakh is the PLA likely to gain so much territory in a single swoop.
SSN lies to the east of Siachen, located between the Saltoro ridge on the Pakistani border and the Saser ridge close to the Chinese border.
On paper, it is the only place where a physical military collusion can take place between Pakistan and China — and the challenge of a two-front war can become real in the worst-case scenario.
If India loses this area, it will be nearly impossible to launch a military operation to wrest back Gilgit-Baltistan from Pakistan.
Dangers of delinking Depsang
Invalidation of Indian claims: The biggest danger of delinking Depsang from the current border crisis in Ladakh, however, is of corroborating the Chinese argument, which invalidates the rightful Indian claim over a large swathe of territory.
In sparsely populated areas like Ladakh, with limited forward deployment of troops, the only assertion of territorial claims is by regular patrolling.
By arguing that the blockade at Y-junction predates the current stand-off — a ‘legacy issue’ that goes back years — the Chinese side can affirm that Indian patrols never had access to this area and thus India has no valid claim on the territory.
Conclusion
As was demonstrated by China in the aftermath of the 1962 War, there should be no holding back in painstakingly asserting one’s claims when it comes to safeguarding the territory.
The Supreme Court Collegium headed by Chief Justice N.V. Ramana has recommended to the Centre the names of six judicial officers for appointment as judges of the Delhi High Court.
What is Collegium System?
The Collegium of judges is the Indian Supreme Court’s invention.
It does not figure in the Constitution, which says judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts are appointed by the President and speaks of a process of consultation.
In effect, it is a system under which judges are appointed by an institution comprising judges.
After some judges were superseded in the appointment of the CJI in the 1970s, and attempts made subsequently to effect a mass transfer of High Court judges across the country.
Hence there was a perception that the independence of the judiciary was under threat. This resulted in a series of cases over the years.
Evolution: The Judges Cases
First Judges Case (1981) ruled that the “consultation” with the CJI in the matter of appointments must be full and effective.
However, it rejected the idea that the CJI’s opinion, albeit carrying great weight, should have primacy.
Second Judges Case (1993) introduced the Collegium system, holding that “consultation” really meant “concurrence”.
It added that it was not the CJI’s individual opinion, but an institutional opinion formed in consultation with the two senior-most judges in the Supreme Court.
Third Judges Case (1998): On a Presidential Reference for its opinion, the Supreme Court, in the Third Judges Case (1998) expanded the Collegium to a five-member body, comprising the CJI and four of his senior-most colleagues.
The procedure followed by the Collegium
Appointment of CJI
The President of India appoints the CJI and the other SC judges.
As far as the CJI is concerned, the outgoing CJI recommends his successor.
In practice, it has been strictly by seniority ever since the supersession controversy of the 1970s.
The Union Law Minister forwards the recommendation to the PM who, in turn, advises the President.
Other SC Judges
For other judges of the top court, the proposal is initiated by the CJI.
The CJI consults the rest of the Collegium members, as well as the senior-most judge of the court hailing from the High Court to which the recommended person belongs.
The consultees must record their opinions in writing and it should form part of the file.
The Collegium sends the recommendation to the Law Minister, who forwards it to the Prime Minister to advise the President.
For High Courts
The CJs of High Courts are appointed as per the policy of having Chief Justices from outside the respective States. The Collegium takes the call on the elevation.
High Court judges are recommended by a Collegium comprising the CJI and two senior-most judges.
The proposal, however, is initiated by the Chief Justice of the High Court concerned in consultation with two senior-most colleagues.
The recommendation is sent to the Chief Minister, who advises the Governor to send the proposal to the Union Law Minister.
Does the Collegium recommend transfers too?
Yes, the Collegium also recommends the transfer of Chief Justices and other judges.
Article 222 of the Constitution provides for the transfer of a judge from one High Court to another.
When a CJ is transferred, a replacement must also be simultaneously found for the High Court concerned. There can be an acting CJ in a High Court for not more than a month.
In matters of transfers, the opinion of the CJI “is determinative”, and the consent of the judge concerned is not required.
However, the CJI should take into account the views of the CJ of the High Court concerned and the views of one or more SC judges who are in a position to do so.
All transfers must be made in the public interest, that is, “for the betterment of the administration of justice”.
Loopholes in the Collegium system
Lack of Transparency: Opaqueness and a lack of transparency, and the scope for nepotism are cited often.
Judges appointing Judge: The attempt made to replace it with a ‘National Judicial Appointments Commission’ was struck down by the court in 2015 on the ground that it posed a threat to the independence of the judiciary.
Criteria: Some do not believe in full disclosure of reasons for transfers, as it may make lawyers in the destination court chary of the transferred judge.
Way ahead
In respect of appointments, there has been an acknowledgment that the “zone of consideration” must be expanded to avoid criticism that many appointees hail from families of retired judges.
The status of a proposed new memorandum of procedure, to infuse greater accountability, is also unclear.
Even the majority opinions admitted the need for transparency, now Collegiums’ resolutions are now posted online, but reasons are not given.
The J&K Delimitation Commission is likely to get a second extension of its term this month.
What is Delimitation and why is it needed?
Delimitation is the act of redrawing boundaries of an assembly or Lok Sabha seat to represent changes in population over time.
This exercise is carried out by a Delimitation Commission, whose orders have the force of law and cannot be questioned before any court.
The objective is to redraw boundaries (based on the data of the last Census) in a way so that the population of all seats, as far as practicable, be the same throughout the State.
Aside from changing the limits of a constituency, the process may result in a change in the number of seats in a state.
Delimitation in J&K
Assembly seats in J&K were delimited in 1963, 1973 and 1995.
Prior to August 5, 2019, carving out of J&K’s Assembly seats was carried out under the J&K Constitution and Jammu and Kashmir Representation of the People Act, 1957.
Until then, the delimitation of Lok Sabha seats in J&K was governed by the Constitution of India.
However, the delimitation of the state’s Assembly was governed by the J&K Constitution and J&K Representation of the People Act, 1957.
There was no census in the state in 1991 and hence no Delimitation Commission was set up by the state until 2001 census.
Why is it in the news again?
After the abrogation of J&K’s special status in 2019, the delimitation of Lok Sabha and Assembly seats in the newly-created UT would be as per the provisions of the Indian Constitution.
On March 6, 2020, the government set up the Delimitation Commission, headed by retired Supreme Court judge Ranjana Prakash Desai, which was tasked with winding up delimitation in J&K in a year.
As per the J&K Reorganization Bill, the number of Assembly seats in J&K would increase from 107 to 114, which is expected to benefit the Jammu region.
Factors considered during Delimitation
The number of districts had increased from 12 to 20 and tehsils from 52 to 207 since the last delimitation.
The population density ranged from 29 persons a square km in Kishtwar to 3,436 persons a square km in Srinagar.
The remoteness of the place, inaccessibility etc are also considered during the exercise.
Concerns raised over Delimitation
Jammu vs. Kashmir: Concerns had been expressed over how the delimitation process may end up favoring the Jammu region over Kashmir in terms of the seats.
Under-representation of Ladakh: Arguments have been made on how Ladakh has been underrepresented, with demands for statehood/sixth schedule.
Non-proportionate reservations: It is argued that seats for STs should’ve been divided in both Jammu province & Kashmir province, as the ST population is almost equal.
Do not forget to answer this PYQ in the comment box:
Q.With reference to the Delimitation Commission, consider the following statements:
The orders of the Delimitation Commission cannot be challenged in a Court of Law.
When the orders of the Delimitation Commission are laid before the Lok Sabha or State Legislative Assembly, they cannot affect any modifications in the orders.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
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Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) workers are still waiting for almost ₹3,360 crore in pending wage payments, with the largest pending payments in West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan.
What is MGNREGA?
The MGNREGA stands for Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act of 2005.
This is labour law and social security measure that aims to guarantee the ‘Right to Work’.
The act was first proposed in 1991 by P.V. Narasimha Rao.
Features of the scheme
MGNREGA is unique in not only ensuring atleast 100 days of employment to the willing unskilled workers, but also in ensuring an enforceable commitment on the implementing machinery i.e., the State Governments, and providing a bargaining power to the labourers.
The failure of provision for employment within 15 days of the receipt of job application from a prospective household will result in the payment of unemployment allowance to the job seekers.
Employment is to be provided within 5 km of an applicant’s residence, and minimum wages are to be paid.
Thus, employment under MGNREGA is a legal entitlement.
The India Press Freedom Report, 2021was recently released by the Rights and Risks Analysis Group (RRAG).
India Press Freedom Report, 2021: Key Highlights
Jammu and Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Tripura topped the list of States and Union Territories where journalists and media houses were targeted in 2021.
It is followed by Delhi (8), Bihar (6), Assam (5), Haryana and Maharashtra (4 each), Goa and Manipur (3 each), Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal (2 each), and Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Kerala (1each).
While J&K recorded the maximum attacks by State actors, Tripura had the most cases of attacks by non-State actors, the analysis of data showed.
Significance of the report
The widespread attacks on the press freedom are an indicator of the continuing deterioration of civic space in the country.
It represents the status of free speech exercised in our country.
