Judiciary must conduct itself; surprised at Supreme Court asking Attorney General to advise constitutional authority: VP Jagdeep Dhankhar

The Supreme Court's Kesavananda Bharati judgment of 1973 which restricted the power of the parliament to amend the Constitution is incorrect and started a wrong tradition, Vice President and Senior Advocate Jagdeep Dhankhar said on Wednesday..The judgment, he said, gave the idea that parliament can amend the Constitution but not its basic structure."With due respect to judiciary, I cannot subscribe to this. Can this be done? Can Parliament allow that its verdict will be subject to any other authority? In my maiden address after I assumed the office of Chairman of Rajya Sabha, I said this. I am not in doubt about it. This cannot happen."The Vice President was speaking at the 83rd All India Presiding Officers’ Conference in Jaipur. .Pertinently, he was critical of what he considered as public posturing from judicial platforms.He was referring to the recent observations by the Supreme Court which had taken an unfavourable view of the comments made by Dhankhar about the Collegium system of appointing judges to the High Courts and the Supreme Court.A bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Vikram Nath and Abhay S Oka had, on December 8, said that the comments were not well taken, and had asked Attorney General for India R Venkataramani to "advise them" (such government functionaries)..Dhankhar responded to the same on Wednesday, stating,"These institutions must know how to conduct themselves. There can be deliberations. But using these platforms for public consumption...I became very surprised when the judges of the honourable court asked the Attorney General to give message to high constitutional authority," Dhankhar said.He also said he declined to entertain the Attorney General on this point."I have declined to entertain the Attorney General on this point. I cannot be party to emasculate the power of legislature. I have been soldier of judiciary, I have highest respect for judiciary. I have been part of it by training, by profession and I have to respect it by the position that I hold. Through this august platform, I will appeal to them, we all have to confine to our deep sense of propriety, self-respect and commitment to constitution. Dialogue through public platforms is not a wholesome mechanism of communication," he added..I became very surprised when the judges of the honourable court asked the Attorney General to give message to high constitutional authority.Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar .On democracy and separation of powers between the three organs that is legislature, executive and judiciary, the Vice President said,"Democracy blossoms, democracy survives when the legislature, the executive and the judiciary they act in togetherness...I don't have any doubts...just as you cannot script in legislature a judgment of the court, in same spirit the court cannot legislate. It is as clear as anything else.".The judiciary striking down the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act in 2015 was a scenario perhaps unparalleled in the democratic history of the world, Dankhar further said.He said, parliamentary sovereignty and autonomy are quintessential for the survival of democracy and cannot be permitted to be compromised by the executive or judiciary."Such kind of a scenario is perhaps unparalleled in the democratic history of the world," he added..[Watch video].(Credits: Sansad TV)