New Delhi: If you want to expose corruption or other forms of misconduct in judiciary, you may soon be able to do so without any fear if Parliament endorses recommendations in this regard. But, you can be in trouble if the allegations turn out to be false. Parliamentary Standing Committee on Law and Justice has made a suggestion for protecting whistle-blowers from the dreaded contempt law, till inquiry into such charges, as part of an effort to ensure accountability of judges.
The proposal has been mooted for inclusion in the Judges (Inquiry) Bill 2006 which is expected to be introduced in Parliament shortly. As per the recommendation, anyone can lodge a complaint about judicial misconduct against any judge, including that of the Supreme Court. The complainants will be insulated from any contempt of law action as long as the allegations are inquired into.
"Clause 23.80 of the Bill provides for no action for contempt of court in respect of the allegations which are the subject-matter of investigation or inquiry by the (proposed National Judicial) Council," said Committee chairman E M Sudarsana Natchiappan, a Rajya Sabha member. "Any preliminary investigation or inquiry pending before the council will not affect the criminal liability in respect of such allegations," said Natchiappan in his report presented to the Union Law Ministry recently.
