SC, govt spar on uniform judicial salaries, pensions

THE COURT NOTED THE NEED FOR FINANCIAL SECURITY AND UNIFORM SERVICE CONDITIONS TO MAINTAIN THE JUDICIARY'S INDEPENDENCE AND EFFICACY

- Utkarsh Anand

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court and the Union government are locked in a fierce tussle over the uniformity of salaries and pensions for judges, with the Centre asserting that not all service conditions impact judicial independence and the court insisting it cannot remain a passive spectator to financial inequities undermining the judiciary's autonomy.

At the heart of the growing discord is the judiciary's demand for financial stability as a cornerstone of judicial independence, pitted against the government's argument for balancing competing priorities.

On Wednesday, a bench of justices Bhushan R Gavai and AG Masih underscored the critical need for financial security and uniform service conditions to maintain the judiciary's independence and efficacy.

"For judges to act in an independent manner, there has to be social security, and one way of ensuring this is by guaranteeing financial stability," the bench told attorney general R Venkataramani, who represented the Centre. It added that the judiciary, as a unified institution, must offer consistent service conditions across all states and Union territories.