Report No. 80

VI. Judges from Outside

6.21. Appointment of one-third judges from outside State.-

We may next deal with the question of having in each High Court about one-third of judges from outside the State. Recommendation for this purpose was made by the States Reorganisation Commission. The Law Commission presided over by Mr. Setalvad in its fourteenth Report observed in this connection:1

"The recent creation of various zones in the country and the efforts to treat the States forming part of these zones as one until for various purposes would, we hope, lead to the States forming part of each zone to be recruiting ground for appointments to the High Court from the members of the Bar in these States. It is hoped that in this manner the expectation of the States Reorganisation Commission that at least one-third of the High Court Judges would be persons drawn from outside the State will be realised".

Likewise, the Study Team2 on Centre-State Relations appointed by the Administrative Reforms Commission also suggested that so far as practicable, one-third of the number of judges of a High Court should be outside. We have given the matter our earnest consideration and are in substantial agreement with the recommendations mentioned above. In our opinion, there should be a convention, according to which one-third of judges in each High Court should be from another State. This would normally have to be done through the process of initial appointments, and not by transfer. It would also in the very nature of things be a slow and gradual process and take some years before we reach the proportion.

1. Law Commission of India, 14th Report, Vol. 1.

2. Administrative Reforms Commission Study Team on Centre-State RElations Report, p. 190, para. 13-20, (September 1963), Vol. 1.