CJI Dipak Misra Initiates Impeachment of Justice Shukla

The Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dipak Misra has initiated the procedure for the removal of Justice Narayan Shukla, a sitting Allahabad high court judge. After the CJI appointed in-house committee found Justice Shukla to be guilty of “judicial impropriety” in his judgments in the Medical Council of India (MCI) case, CJI Misra wrote to President and Prime Minister asking for the impeachment of Shukla.

The in-house committee found that Justice Shukla allowed the GCRG Institute of Medical Sciences to admit students for 2017-2018 batch by making hand written corrections on September 4, to his own bench’s order of September 1, last year. Earlier, the Supreme Court held that the Allahabad High Court would not pass any order which would allow the GCRG institute to admit fresh students for 2017-18. The GCRG Institute was among 46 medical colleges which have been barred by the central government from admitting students citing substandard facilities.

Meanwhile, Justice Shukla’s name also emerged in another case the Central Bureau of Investigation is probing on corruption allegations in which retired Odisha High Court judge IM Qudussi, Chairman of Prasad Education Trust B P Yadav were arrested on September 20, 2017, along with four others. As per the FIR filed by the CBI in the case, the accused have entered into a criminal conspiracy to “get the matter settled”. That is, to get the ban on admitting students to the Prasad Institute of Medical Sciences (one among the 46 medical colleges which were barred by the government) revoked through the help of middlemen. Currently the accused persons are out on bail.

On September 6, 2017, a CBI official approached CJI Dipak Misra, along with the evidence the agency had, seeking permission to file an FIR against Justice Shukla (As it is a formal procedure to approach CJI before filing a case against a sitting high court judge). With CJI denying to grant so, the CBI did not include Justice Shukla’s name in the FIR. The Indian Express reported that the preliminary enquiry report by the CBI states “Source has informed that Shri I. M Quddusi approached Hon’ble Justice Narayan Shukla, the high court of Allahabad at Lucknow bench for managing the matter. Source has also informed that Shri I.M Quddusi and Shri B.P Yadav met Hon’ble Justice Shri Narayan Shukla in the morning of 25.08-2017 at his residence in Lucknow regarding the matter and delivered illegal gratification”.

Supreme Court is currently hearing a petition filed by Citizens for Judicial Accountability and Reforms, NGO, which is demanding a SIT probe into this case.