Supreme Court dismisses plea challenging rules to join Madhya Pradesh judicial service

The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed pleas challenging the rules prescribing an eligibility of at least three years practice or 70 per cent marks in law graduation for entry-level judicial service candidates in Madhya Pradesh. 

A bench comprising Justice Hrishikesh Roy and Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra upheld a judgment of the Madhya Pradesh High Court in this regard. During the hearing, Justice Roy remarked that they are not going to entertain the pleas, adding that it took some years of learning and experience, which is why these rules are framed. He mentioned that the rules are to ensure better judicial candidates.

Earlier on April 1, the Madhya Pradesh High Court had upheld the rule in question, leading to the instant appeal before the apex court. The High Court had said that the intent of the rule was quality-centric, so as to ensure that the best among the best are selected as judges. Furthermore, the interest of litigants who approach courts for justice was far more important than the interest of individuals. 

Previously, the Madhya Pradesh High Court had lamented that the standards for the judiciary have remained stagnant for decades without any improvement, while in all other professions, the standards have gone up. It had also rejected the argument that the requirement was in violation of the right to equality before the law.

The batch of plea before the Madhya Pradesh High Court had challenged the amendment to the Rule 7 of the Madhya Pradesh Judicial Service (Recruitment and Conditions of Service) Rules, 1994, which was notified last year.

The apex court today held that it found no reason to interfere with the High Court ruling. The court ordered that though the counsel have advanced arguments at some length, they see no reason to interfere with the High Court’s view. Accordingly, the Special Leave Petition was dismissed.