I am a master in India

Chapter 353 The Collegial Council

Back in New Delhi, Ron wasted no time. Through an official's introduction, he prepared to visit the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of India.

In India, the Chief Justice wields immense power. This doesn't refer to his influence in a particular case, but rather the power to sway the entire system.

Yes, the Chief Justice and four senior judges form a panel that has the power to appoint officials of the judiciary.

This refers to all judicial institutions across India, such as judges of the Tamil Supreme Court.

This power sounds somewhat conflicting with the Indian government's administrative system, as it falls under the authority of the Organization Department in New Delhi.

However, the judicial system is an exception, except that the Chief Justice is nominated by the Cabinet. All judicial officials, from top to bottom, are appointed by the House of Representatives.

It's euphemistically called judicial independence.

No minister, or even the entire executive branch, may recommend any candidate for the House of Representatives to the President.

This is a closed bureaucratic system, more independent than the civil service system of the Executive Council.

Although the Indian Constitution does not explicitly state that the parliament is part of the political system, this system has remained strong for over a century.

How powerful is it? The council has the power to interpret the constitution.

When there are disagreements on certain cases, the council can offer innovative interpretations of the constitution.

This gives the council much greater power; it becomes not only the upholder of the law but also its drafter.

To put it more bluntly and bluntly, the verdict in a case is entirely up to the collegial panel.

If existing legal provisions do not support their claims, then create one on the spot.

It's unbelievable! Why are those foreign companies suddenly being taken to court?

Because the council can trace back the law decades and then change the original provisions with a few strokes of the pen.

This is the power of constitutional interpretation; previously adjudicated cases may not be valid!

Without a doubt, doing so would be tantamount to tearing apart India's judicial authority, and would be more like a joke.

But this is India, do you really have any hope for justice here?
If the judiciary were truly effective, then in many places, tens of millions of cases wouldn't have accumulated, enough to last for hundreds of years to be tried.

To put it bluntly, Indian law only works when those in power need it.

For example, when Jayalalita was the Chief Minister, the judiciary became completely ineffective.

When the opposition party comes to power, they immediately become prisoners again, demonstrating the highly flexible role of the judiciary.

But for Ron, this was fine too. As long as he could get the Chief Justice on his side, the Supreme Court of Tamil would know what to do.

If they don't obey, the Chief Justice has the power to appoint and dismiss district court officials.

The Supreme Court in New Delhi is located on the north side of Resina Hill. It is a domed building with outstretched arms, known as the "Scales of Justice".

The central beam is the central wing of the court, which consists of the Chief Justice's House of Representatives and the Central Court, with two courtrooms on each side.

The right wing has bars, restaurants, rooms, offices of the Attorney General and other legal officials, and a court library, and is a place for relaxation.

The left wing is the courthouse, where judges review case files.

The building has wings made up of 15 courtrooms on both sides, which act as the two legs of the balance wheel. At the end are two semi-circular hooks, representing the balance wheel's disc.

From a distance, it looks exactly like a balance scale, in the literal sense.

To Ron's surprise, there was hardly anyone there; to be precise, apart from the cleaning servants, there were no judges.

He checked his watch; it was nine o'clock in the morning.

Are there any holidays today?

“No, today is a normal workday. I told you, Ron, we’re too early, it’s not time yet.”

When do judges start work?

“Maybe at ten o’clock, maybe in the afternoon.” Vijay shrugged.

"How is this any different from taking a vacation?"

"They're huge; you could go three days on vacation and not see a single one of them."

Ron sighed. This is even more comfortable than being a civil servant at Tokyo University.

Vijay said that Indian judges are like aristocrats during the colonial period, living a very high-society life.

A judge's typical workday usually starts at 10:00 AM and ends at 4:15 PM, with at least an hour for lunch in between.

Of course, this is all under the premise of normalcy. In reality, many judges don't start work until 2 PM, and their daily working hours are less than two hours.

Judges also have many holidays, and the vast majority of Indian courts postpone their sessions on all national religious holidays.

India has more religious festivals than any other country in the world. In addition to the mainstream Hindu and pastoral festivals, there are also commemorative days for the struggle for national independence, as well as numerous festivals of Sikhism, Christianity, Buddhism, Jainism, and Zoroastrianism.

These holidays are not mandatory and participation is voluntary, but most Indian judges observe them without fail.

As a result, over the course of a year, some judges had less than 200 working days.

Why are judges able to live such a leisurely life without any fear of being replaced?
The reason for their unbridled absenteeism is that there are still many vacancies in the judicial system. India has one of the smallest proportions of judges in its total population, yet the Indian High Court is not in a hurry to fill the vacant positions in its subordinate agencies.

In some places, nearly a quarter of the judges' seats are vacant.

Vijay attributed the cause to "maska," which means flattery or sycophancy in Hindi.

Some ambitious judges will lobby the collegial panel, claiming they have the capacity to address the existing judicial workload.

With a collegial panel present, even the most difficult cases can be resolved with ease.

They used sweet talk to lull the House into a false sense of security, persuading five members not to rush to fill the vacancies.

Similarly, the House of Representatives is also concerned about being accused of corruption, bias in nominating people, or incompetence in nominating people.

So they simply left the vacant positions vacant to avoid any risk.

For them, the risk lies entirely in who they choose to appoint.

Of course, India also has some upright judges who regularly review those judicial institutions that have lost their balance and make timely adjustments.

If it weren't for these few individuals, the judicial system might have collapsed long ago.

India should be grateful that it has a group of highly educated people who are working hard to keep the country running.

However, since the 90s, with the opening up of the economy, the best lawyers have become less and less willing to become judges because they can earn higher incomes in the private sector.

Although a judge in India can own a car with a driver, a residence with a garden and a chef, be exempt from daily expenses, and enjoy high prestige, the official salary of a judge appears to be decreasing over time.

Based on a monthly salary of 3 rupees, or roughly $750, a high court judge late in his career earns less than a young engineer at a large company.

For example, the technical engineers at Suer Electric earn about a thousand dollars a month, which is more than the salary of a Supreme Court judge.

Some software engineers in Bangalore earn similar salaries. Tata, Reliance, and Bora all achieve similar levels of success.

Moreover, the higher the salary, the more high-paying positions become. However, the salaries in government departments like the courts don't change much for several years.

Some excellent lawyers either go on to work for top law firms or large corporations, or they simply end up working for gangs.

Gangs are among the few organizations willing to pay lawyers extremely high salaries.

Take the Daoud gang in Mumbai as an example; many of the lawyers they hire are poached from top law firms.

Money makes things easier. If you want to send your child to a good university abroad, or even just in India, a judge's salary is far from enough.

Pensions are also closely linked to salaries, so once you retire, your official residence and driver will be taken back, and you will have to consider other sources of income.

In other words, corruption, or in legal terms, "making deals."

Some judges can even be publicly hired to handle a case because they know for sure they won't be dismissed.

Just like government officials and civil servants, Indian judges are generally not dismissed or punished.

To remove a judge of the High Court, at least two-thirds of the votes in Parliament are required.

What does that mean? It's equivalent to the number of votes needed to amend the constitution.

Without a doubt, this has never happened.

Vijay also revealed that a black market exists within the judicial profession, with prices clearly marked for every case handled.

If you are tried for drug-related offenses, you can be released on bail by paying 3,000 rupees; if you are charged with murder, you can be released on bail by paying 20,000 rupees, and so on.

Some judges even operate this business like a family business, having their sons or sons-in-law complete the transactions.

In other countries, if you do something dishonorable, your first thought is not to let your family know.

India is different, because family members will help you devise strategies.

The motto of the Indian judiciary is "Justice delayed is justice denied," yet the judges themselves are late every day.

This kind of lax and procrastinating style is not a recent phenomenon; some ancient books record fables that serve as warnings to people.

Legend has it that a king named Nika made a case about a cow wait too long, and when he was reincarnated, he was a lizard.

If that were the case, Indian courts would be teeming with lizards today.

In fact, the lizards hadn't gotten up yet, or rather, they were enjoying their leisure time.

Ron couldn't just wait there, so he turned the car around and headed straight for the Chief Justice's house.

High-ranking officials in New Delhi all have officially assigned residences, and they are very impressive.

Take, for example, the current Chief Justice Verma; his house is not much worse than the villa that Ron bought.

The garden was clearly well-maintained; not only were the various plants and trees arranged artistically, but the flower arrangements on the windowsill also exuded a fresh, bourgeois charm.

Ron arrived uninvited and walked into the hall without waiting for the servants to announce his arrival.

He was taken aback when he entered the house; there was hardly anyone there, only a girl.

(End of this chapter)