HC judges cannot assume role of domain experts: Supreme Court

NEW DELHI: Supreme Court cautioned on Monday constitutional court judges against assuming the role of domain experts and suggesting remedial steps and said it would be dangerous if they deviate from their primary duty to decide disputes as neutral umpires after considering rival submissions.

The remark came from a bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant, justices Joymalya Bagchi and N V Anjaria on a petition filed by Jharkhand Public Service Commission challenging the Jharkhand HC's decision to direct deletion of two questions and award of one mark to either of two options to a question attempted by candidates appearing in a preliminary test for recruitment of judicial officers.

"Should a constitutional court assume the role of super-examiner just because the test was for recruitment of judicial officers and the question related to law? It will be very dangerous if HC judges assume the role of domain experts," CJI Kant said.

"Tomorrow a judge may have knowledge of biochemistry. Should he interfere in examination question papers and answer keys relating to recruitment in the field of biochemistry? HC judges must leave these issues to domain experts," he added.

The bench said the HC, on the administrative side, had framed the questions in consultation with JPSC. "The power of reappreciation/reconsideration of answer sheets must be uniform for all examinations and not only for judicial service tests. HCs cannot be super-examiners, and such issues must be left to domain experts," it said.

"If that is so, it is necessary that the HC, while exercising its power of judicial review, should have referred the issue to the administrative side of the HC for constituting an expert committee to revisit the answer sheets and answer keys," the bench said.

The bench asked the HC to set up an expert committee that will include subject experts, including those from the fields of law and English, to reevaluate the answer keys and answer sheets.

When the counsel sought early resolution of the controversy, the bench asked HC to resolve it within two weeks and send a report to JPSC. The counsel said there had been no recruitment to Jharkhand judicial service for the last two and a half years. To this the CJI said, "I'm more worried about the fact that there has not been any elevation of advocates as judges of the HC since 2017."


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