It has now been reported that the Rajya Sabha Chairman has constituted a three-member committee to investigate the grounds on which the removal of Justice Soumitra Sen of the Calcutta High Court is prayed for. The three members are Justice D.K. Jain of the Supreme Court, Justice T.S. Thakur, Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, and Fali S. Nariman, senior advocate, Supreme Court. But in view of what Fali S.Nariman has reportedly said about Justice Sen’s impeachment recommendation of the Chief Justice of India, should he not have recused himself from the committee?
*Relevant posts on CJI’s recommendation to remove Justice Soumitra Sen
Mr.Fali S.Nariman is clearly disqualified to probe into the charges levelled against Justice Soumitra Sen notwithstanding the fact that he has merely expressed delight in that article at the turn of events. I fully believe that Mr.Fali S.Nariman will accomplish his new task most admirably, but the issue is not about 'possible bias' but about the 'appearance of bias'.
Has Mr.Fali S Nariman accepted the Rajya Sabha's offer? If he hasn't, I could bet that he will not, should the statements attributed to him in the media be true. He has already demonstrated his commitment to fairness by declining to act as AMICUS in the Judge's Assets Case in the Delhi High Court. I think it is very unlikely of him to surprise people now by accepting the Rajya Sabha's offer.
I removed my previous post to correct this error:
1. 'merely' inserted before 'expressed delight'