Asaduddin Owaisi backs removal of controversial judge for violating judicial norms

Hyderabad parliamentarian Asaduddin Owaisi on Tuesday said that he supported the impeachment proceedings against Allahabad High Court judge Shakhar Yadav.

Justice Yadav’s controversial comments, including that the country would run as per the wishes of the majority, and Muslim systems of marriage and divorce, were criticised by several sections of society at a Vishwa Hindu Parishad event.

Mr. Owaisi, who is also the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen president, stated that he had signed on a notice initiated by JKNC parliamentarian Syed Ruhullah Mehdi seeking Justice Yadav’s removal. “The judge’s behaviour violates constitutional norms, including the Supreme Court’s ‘Restatement of Values of Judicial Life’, he stated“.

Earlier, Mr. Owaisi had criticised the judge for reportedly using the communal slur ‘kathmullah”. Mr. Owaisi sought to buttress his criticism by quoting from Restatement of Judicial Life, a document adopted by the Full Court Meeting of the Supreme Court on May 7, 1997, available on the official website of the Supreme Court.

Mr. Owaisi stated stated that the ‘conduct of the members of the higher judiciary should reaffirm the people’s faith in the impartiality of the judiciary’. Quoting from the document, he stated, “A judge shall not enter into public debate or express his views in public on political matters or on matters that are pending or are likely to arise for judicial determination.” He also pointed out that the document discourages judges from acts that are perceived as unbecoming to the office, and that the judge must be aware that public is observant.

Meanwhile, S.Q. Masood, a Hyderabad-based activist, has written letters to Members of Parliament, including Rahul Gandhi, Akhilesh Yadav, Kanimozhi Karunanidhi, Mahua Moitra and Mr. Owaisi to initiate proceedings that would lead to Justice Yadav’s removal.