Case: Justice P.D. Dinakaran Vs. Hon''ble Judges Inquiry Committee &amp; Others

2. Fifty members of the Rajya Sabha submitted a notice of motion for presenting an address to the President of India for removal of the petitioner, who was then posted as Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court, under Article 217 read with Article 124(4) of the Constitution of India. The notice enumerated the acts of misbehaviour allegedly committed by the petitioner and was accompanied by an explanatory note and documents in support of the allegations. After the motion was admitted, the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha (hereinafter referred to as, the Chairman) constituted a Committee comprising Mr. Justice V.S. Sirpurkar, Judge, Supreme Court of India, Mr. Justice A.R. Dave, the then Chief Justice of Andhra Pradesh High Court and respondent No.33. Immediately after issue of notification dated 15.1.2010 under Section 3(2) of the Act, the newspapers carried reports suggesting that there was an objection to the inclusion of respondent No.3 in the Committee on the ground that he had given legal opinion to the petitioner in December, 2009. On reading the newspaper reports, respondent No.3 sent letter dated 19.1.2010 to the Chairman with the request that he may be relieved from the Committee. Paragraph 2 of that letter reads as under:Although, there is no conflict of duty and interest, as I did not render any professional service to him, there is a demand from certain quarters for my recusal which you might have noticed in todays Hindustan Times. I am sure you will appreciate that justice should not only be done but also seen to be done. Even though I have no official communication as yet about my nomination, it will not be proper for me to function as a member of the Committee in the fact of such objection. I request you to kindly relieve me forthwith and nominate another jurist in my place and oblige.. After due consideration, the Chairman declined to accept the request of respondent No.3 and asked him to continue as member of the Committee. Thereupon, respondent No.3 sent letter dated 21.1.2010 and agreed to accept the assignment. On that very day, Convenor of the Campaign for Judicial Accountability and Reform sent a letter to the Vice-President wherein a demand was made in the garb of making suggestion that Mr. Justice V.S. Sirpurkar should recuse from the Committee because he had association with the petitioner as a Judge of the Madras High Court from 1997 to 2003Similar suggestion-cum-demand was made qua respondent No.3 by stating that the petitioner had consulted respondent No.3 and the latter had advised him to get a commission of inquiry appointed to go into the charges5. On being instructed by the Chairman, the Secretary General of the Rajya Sabha forwarded a copy of the aforesaid letter to respondent No.3. In his response dated 27.1.2010, respondent No.3 detailed the background in which the petitioner had met him on 6.12.2009 and what transpired between them. The relevant paragraphs of that letter read as under:I would like to place on record as to why Chief Justice Dinakaran met me at my residence with prior appointment on Sunday, the 6th December, 2009 at 02:30 p.m. On Saturday, 28 Nov 09, there was a day-long National Seminar organized by The Bar Association of India under the Presidentship of Shri F.S. Nariman to discuss the problems of the Judiciary, in which the Honble Law Minister also participated briefly in the inaugural session. I am one of the Vice-Presidents. In the course of my speech, I demanded that the Collegium should not proceed further with the recommendation to bring Chief Justice P.D. Dinakaran to the Supreme Court and there should be a public inquiry in which Chief Justice Dinkaran should clear himself of the charges levelled against by senior members of the Bar and during the inquiry, he should step down from his office and remain on leave. Many eminent members of the Bar including two former Attorney Generals for India namely, Shri Soli J. Sorabjee and Shri Ashok Desai, a former President of International Bar Association namely Shri RKP Shankar Dass and a former President of Law Asia namely, Shri Anil Divan, who participated in the seminar expressed the same view. Finally, on the request of the President of Bar Association of India, I drafted the Resolution which was touched up by him before it was passed unanimously by the members present. The speeches made at the seminar, including mine, were reported in the media. In the following week, Chief Justice Dinakaran visited Delhi, presumably to meet the Chief Justice of India, members of the Collegium and others. While in Delhi, he telephoned to me saying that he was surprised that I too believed that he was guilty of the charges levelled against him and he would like to meet me personally. When the Chief Justice of a High Court seeks appointment, it would be improper for any member of the legal profession to refuse it. When he met me on December 06, 2009 I told him that when serious allegations had been made against him by senior members of the Bar practicing at Chennai, Bangalore and Delhi, it was proper that there should be a public inquiry. When he said that he was totally innocent and he could convince me about it, I told him politely that he has to convince those who made the allegations on some basis and that will be possible only in a public inquiry. It was then I suggested that if he was innocent, he should himself invite an inquiry under the Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1952 and offer to proceed on leave during the Inquiry. There was neither consultation on the merits of the charges nor any opinion sought or given. He did not seek my professional services for his case. The matter ended there. What I told him in private when he met me at my residence was nothing but what I had earlier demanded in public at the seminar. There is absolutely no question of conflict of interest and duty in such a case. When the Honble Chairman of Rajya Sabha, after due consideration of my offer to quit, requested me to continue, I accepted the request most respectfully as it is a call to public duty from no less a person than the Vice-President of India, which I shall not shirk.. On 12.5.2010, the petitioner suo moto sent a letter to the Vice-President of India and Chairman, Rajya Sabha stating therein that through print and electronic media he had come to know about constitution of the Committee under Section 3(2) of the Act. The petitioner claimed that the allegations levelled against him were false and baseless. He expressed anguish on being prevented from performing his judicial work and prayed that the inquiry initiated against him may be completed expeditiously and his grievance be redressed at the earliest. For the sake of reference, letter dated 12.5.2010 is reproduced below:th May, 2010May I take this opportunity to present this supplication for kind consideration of Your Excellency2. Even though I have learnt through print and electronic media that an impeachment motion has been moved against me under Article 217 read with 124(4) of the Constitution of India before the Rajya Sabha by 75 Honble Members of Parliament, as on date, I have not received any official communication whatsoever in this regard till date3. I have also learnt through print and electronic media that a Committee, as contemplated under Section 3(b) of The Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968, has been constituted by Your Excellency consisting of Honble Mr. Justice V.S. Sirpurkar, Judge, Supreme Court of India; Honble Mr. Justice A.R. Dave, the then Chief Justice, Andhra Pradesh High Court and Mr. P.P. Rao, Senior Advocate, Jurist, in January, 2010, but till date I have not officially heard anything in this connection to enable me to explain my case. Now that Mr. Justice A.R. Dave is elevated to the Supreme Court of India, the Committee requires to be reconstituted4. In the meanwhile, the print and electronic media had given wild publicity about the allegations made against me, causing irreparable damage to me and to my family personally and to the constitutional position I am holding. All the allegations are made with an ulterior motive to stall my elevation to the Supreme Court, when the Honble collegium of the Supreme Court recommended my name for elevating me to Supreme Court5. It appears that Honble Rajya Sabha Members have been misled by the reports of the District Collector, Thiruvallur, State of Tamil Nadu dated 8th, 10th and 15th October, 2009 stating that myself and my wife have encroached 199.53 acres of lands at Kaverirajapuram, Tiruttani Taluk, Thiruvallur District, State of Tamil Nadu. As the said reports of the District Collector were specifically denied by me as baseless, the matter was referred to a Committee under the Chairmanship of Major General (Dr.) Siva Kumar, Survey of India, Department of Science and Technology, who, ultimately on 15th February, 2010, produced a survey map to my wife, Dr. K.M. Vinodhini Dinakaran, holding that there is no encroachment of any government/public lands either by me or by my wife6. All the allegations leveled against me are false and baseless7. Myself and my family members are humiliated and put into great hardship by the vested interest persons; and I have been prevented to discharge my obligations under the constitution to perform the judicial work, pending enquiry by the Committee. But, the enquiry is yet to commence. Your Excellency may kindly appreciate that the enquiry initiated against me cannot be an endless waitHaving patiently waited all these days for an opportunity to explain my case that the allegations are baseless and there is no material and merit whatsoever, I earnestly request Your Excellency to do the needful, so that, my genuine grievance may kindly be redressed at the earliest and justice be rendered to me expeditiously7. In the meanwhile, Mr. Justice A.R. Dave, Chief Justice of the Andhra Pradesh High Court, was transferred to the Bombay High Court and was then elevated as Judge of this Court and in his place Mr. Justice J.S. Khehar, Chief Justice of the Uttarakhand High Court was included in the Committee. In September, 2010, Mr. Justice Aftab Alam, Judge, Supreme Court of India was appointed as Presiding Officer because Mr. Justice V.S. Sirpurkar recused from the Committee8. After about two months of the aforesaid development, the petitioners wife, Dr. (Mrs.) K.M. Vinodhini Dinakaran, sent letter dated 27.11.2010 to the Presiding Officer and the members of the Committee with the request that investigation into the allegations levelled against her husband should be got done through unbiased officials. This request was made in the context of some inquiry having been made by Mr. Govindswamy, Village Administrative Officer, Kaverirajapuram Village, Tiruttani Taluk and Mr. Veeraraghavan, former Tahasildar Tiruttani. She claimed that both the officials were in collusion with the then District Collector, Mr. Palani Kumar IAS, who was inimical to the petitioner. She requested that the investigating agency should not engage Mr. Govindswamy and Mr. Veeraraghavan because they had already acted with mala fides and bias against her family9. After preliminary scrutiny of the material placed before it, which included documents summoned from Government departments and agencies/instrumentalities of the State, the Committee issued notice dated 16.3.2011, which was served upon the petitioner on 23.3.2011, requiring him to appear on 9.4.2011 to answer the charges. The notice was accompanied by a statement of charges and lists of the documents and witnesses10. Upon receiving the notice, the petitioner submitted representation dated 8.4.2011 to the Vice-President of India and the Chairman, Rajya Sabha with the prayer that the order admitting notice of motion may be withdrawn, the order constituting the Inquiry Committee be rescinded and notice issued by the Committee may be annulled. In that representation, the petitioner, for the first time, raised an objection against the inclusion of respondent No.3 in the Committee by alleging that the latter had already expressed views in the matter and declared him guilty of certain charges. The petitioner claimed that respondent No.3 had led a delegation of the advocates to meet the then Chief Justice of India and was a signatory to the representation made by the senior advocates against his elevation to the Supreme Court. The petitioner further claimed that he felt agitated by the attitude of respondent No.3 because earlier the said respondent had not only appreciated his work but even called upon him to communicate his appreciation and also sent congratulatory message on his name being cleared for elevation to the Supreme Court. The petitioner also stated that he along with his wife and one K. Venkatasubbaraju met respondent No.3 at his residence and, during the meeting, respondent No.3 admitted that he was misled by certain vested interest in signing the representation. Paragraphs 6, 7 and 8 of the letter written by the petitioner are reproduced below:6. Once I came to know that Shri P.P. Rao has led the delegation against me demanding that I should not be elevated, I was agitated by this attitude of Shri P.P. Rao. Earlier Shri P.P. Rao had always appreciated my work on the bench and even called on me to communicate the same. When I was a judge of the High Court of Judicature at Madras, Shri P.P. Rao called on me and appreciated my work as Judge. He also paid encomiums for my bold and independent approach. Soon after my name was considered and cleared for elevation to the Supreme Court of India Shri P.P. Rao congratulated me in writing. Therefore, I I was aghast when I learnt about his opposition to my elevation. Shri K. Venkatasubbaraju, an Advocate who is a common friend of both of us spoke to Shri P.P. Rao and arranged for a meeting between us. Accordingly, I along with Shri K. Venkatasubbaraju accompanied by my wife called on Shri P.P. Rao at his residence and confronted him with the newspaper reports. Shri P.P. Rao admitted that he was misled by certain vested interests in signing the petition against me he even went to the extent of saying that he was forced to sign the petition as an office bearer of the Association. In the light of the said explanation I though it fit to leave the matter at that7. In the meanwhile I was shocked to see Shri P.P. Raos name included in the Committee constituted under the Chairmanship of Honble Mr. Justice V.S. Sirpurkar. Even before I could react to that the very same vested interests, who are instrumental in engineering false allegations against me, opposed the constitution of the said Committee. They took specific objection to the inclusion of Shri P.P. Rao in the Committee while objecting to the appointment of the Chairman. It was on such opposition that Honble Mr. Justice V.S. Sirpurkar resigned as the Chairman of the Committee. Following suit, I expected, keeping in mind Shri P.P. Raos standing and reputation, that Shri P.P. Rao would also quit the Committee8. In this background, it is clear that Shri P.P. Rao has already declared me guilty of certain charges on the basis of which he opposed my elevation to Apex Court tooth and nail. It is a travesty of justice that the Judges Inquiry Committee has been so constituted with the same Shri P.P. Rao as a sitting member of the said Committee. This is opposed to all principles of justice and rule of law. It is, in these circumstances, this petition is presented on the following amongst the other grounds.11. On the next day, i.e., 9.4.2011, the petitioner sent a letter to the Presiding Officer of the Committee enclosing a copy of the representation submitted to the Chairman and requested that decision on the same be awaited. On 20.4.2011, the petitioner made an application to the Committee and raised several objections against notice dated 16.3.2011 including the one that respondent No.3 was biased against him. After two days, respondent No.3 sent letter dated 22.4.2011 to the Presiding Officer of the Committee and reiterated all that he had said in letter dated 27.1.2010 but, at the same time, respondent No.3 specifically denied that he had pronounced upon the guilt of the petitioner. He also denied that the petitioner had consulted him or that any opinion was sought and given. Respondent No.3 acknowledged that when news appeared about the petitioners name having been cleared for elevation to the Supreme Court, he had congratulated him vide e-mail dated 30.8.2009, referred to letter dated 19.1.2010 addressed to the Chairman and indicated that it was his duty to recuse from the membership of the Committee once again. Respondent No.3 prepared a similar letter for being sent to the Chairman, but on being advised by the Presiding Officer of the Committee, he held back the same12. After considering the objections of the petitioner, the Committee (respondent No.3 did not take part in the proceedings) passed detailed order dated 24.4.2011, the relevant portions of which are extracted below:According to the applicant, earlier when his name was recommended for appointment as a Judge of the Supreme Court, Mr. P.P. Rao had led a delegation of lawyers to the then Chief Justice of India to hand over a petition opposing his elevation to the Supreme Court. He was one of the signatories to the representation handed over to the then Chief Justice of India urging him not to elevate the applicant as a Judge of the Supreme Court. He was one of the speakers in a seminar organized by the Bar Council of India urging the authorities against the elevation of the applicant as a Judge of the Supreme Court. Mr. Rao was one of the leading personalities spearheading the campaign against his elevation to the Supreme Court. On those allegations, the applicant states that he does not expect a just and fair inquiry with Mr. P.P. Rao, being a member of the CommitteeMr. P.P. Rao has the distinction that his presence on the Committee has been, at one time or the other, objected to by both sides and perhaps this alone, apart from anything, else is sufficient to confirm his impartiality. It may be recalled that at the very inception of the Committee, Shri Prashant Bhushan, on behalf of one of the groups that were agitating against the recommendation for Justice Dinakarans appointment as a judge of the Supreme Court and were demanding an enquiry for his removal as a judge of the High Court addressed a letter to the Chairman, Rajya Sabha objecting to the inclusion of Mr. P.P. Rao on the Committee. The objection was based on the ground that even before the notice of motion was presented in the Rajya Sabha, leading to the formation of the Committee, and while the demand to hold an enquiry against the judge was still gaining ground Mr. Justice P.D. Dinakaran had met and consulted Mr. Rao in the matter. On that occasion Mr. Rao had made an offer to quit the Committee but his offer was not accepted by the Chairman. As the Committee proceeded with its work, with Mr. Rao as one of its members, there was no complaint or objection from any quarter. All the misgivings were satisfied and the groups and organizations that might be called as the initial whistle-blowers appear to be quite comfortable with Mr. Rao on the CommitteeNow the objection has come from the side of the Judge whose conduct is the subject of enquiryThe earlier objection was completely misconceived and without basis but it did not have any ulterior motive. Unfortunately the same can not be said about the present objection. It is clearly an after thought and has an oblique motive. The applicant was aware that Mr. Rao is a member of the Committee from the day one. As early as on May 12, 2010, he had addressed a letter to the Chairman, Rajya Sabha urging him to have the proceedings before the Committee expedited. In the letter, he mentioned the names of each of the three members of the Committee, as it was in existence at that time, including Mr. P.P. Rao, Senior Advocate but there is not a whisper of protest against Mr. Raos inclusion in the Committee. Paragraph 3 of the letter reads as follows:I have also learnt through print and electronic media that a Committee, as contemplated under Section 3(b) of [The] Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968, has been constituted by Your Excellency consisting of Honble Mr. Justice V.S. Sirpurkar, Judge, Supreme Count of India; Honble Mr. Justice A.R. Dave, the then Chief Justice, Andhra Pradesh High Court and Mr. P.P. Rao, Senior Advocate, jurist, in January, 2010, but till date I have not officially heard anything in this connection to enable me to explain my case. Now that Mr. Justice A.R. Dave is elevated to the Supreme Court of India, the Committee requires to be reconstitutedMr. Justice P.D. Dinakaran was given reply by Shri K.D. Singh, Secretary to the Committee by his letter dated August 4, 2010. From the letter it was evident that following Justice Daves elevation, the Committee was re-constituted and Justice J.S. Khehar, who at that time was Chief Justice of the Uttarakhand High Court was brought on the Committee in his place. The letter went on to say that the Committee consisting of Honble Mr. Justice V.S. Sirpurkar, Judge, Supreme Court of India, Honble Mr. Justice J.S. Khehar, Chief Justice of Uttarakhand High Court and Shri P.P. Rao, Senior Advocate, was examining the Notice of Motion. Mr. Justice Dinakaran did not get back raising any objection against Mr. Raos presence on the CommitteeOn November 27, 2010, Dr. Mrs. K.M. Vinodhini Dinakaram, wife of Mr. Justice P.D. Dinakaran sent a letter addressed to the three members of the Committee urging that in connection with the enquiry her aged relatives might not be harassed and further that the Committee should not rely upon the statements of certain persons, named in the letter, who were inimically disposed of towards them. This letter was sent separately to all the three members, including Mr. P.P. Rao. This letter too, does not even suggest any reservation about the inclusion of Mr. Rao in the Committee. The objection is raised for the first time only after a notice along with the charges and the list of witnesses and documents in support of the charges were served upon the JudgeThe stage and the time at which the objection is raised make it clear that the object is to somehow scuttle the enquiry by causing delay in the Committees proceedings. (emphasis supplied)

Reasoning:
An analysis of the above reproduced provisions shows that Section 3(1) of the Act provides for admission of motion by the Speaker or, as the case may be, the Chairman provided it is supported by 100 members of the House of the People or 50 members of the Council of States, as the case may be. The Speaker or, as the case may be, the Chairman, is entitled to consult such person, if any, as he thinks fit and to consider such material, if any, as may be available to him. If the motion is admitted, the Speaker or, as the case may be, the Chairman has to keep the motion pending and to constitute a Committee for the purpose of making an investigation into the grounds on which the removal of a Judge is prayed for [Section 3(2)]. The Committee constituted for the purpose of investigation shall consist of three members of whom - (a) one shall be chosen from among the Chief Justice and other Judges of the Supreme Court, (b) one shall be chosen from among the Chief Justices of the High Courts and (c) one shall be a person who is in the opinion of the Speaker or, as the case may be, the Chairman, a distinguished jurist. In terms of Section 3(3), the Committee is required to frame definite charges against the Judge on the basis of which the investigation is proposed to be held. Section 3(4) requires that the charges together with a statement of the grounds on which each charge is based shall be communicated to the Judge and he shall be given a reasonable opportunity of presenting a written statement of defence. Section 3(8) deals with the situation where the Committee, after considering the written statement of the Judge, decides to amend the charges. In that event, the Judge is required to be given a reasonable opportunity of presenting a fresh written statement of defence. In terms of Section 3(9), the Central Government is empowered to appoint an advocate to conduct a case against the Judge. Section 4(1) declares that subject to any rules made in that behalf, the Committee shall have power to regulate its own procedure in making the investigation. It also lays down that the Committee shall give a reasonable opportunity to the Judge to cross-examine the witnesses, adduce evidence and be heard in his defence. Section 4(2) provides for submission of report by the Committee to the Speaker or, as the case may be, to the Chairman. It also provides for submission of report both to the Speaker and the Chairman where the Committee has been jointly constituted by them. In terms of Section 4(3), the report of the Committee is required to be placed before both the Houses of Parliament where the Committee has been constituted jointly by the Speaker and the Chairman. Section 5 lays down that for the purpose of making investigation under the Act, the Committee shall have powers of a Civil Court while trying a suit under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 in matters relating to summoning of witnesses etc. Section 6(1) lays down that if the Committee finds that the Judge is not guilty of any misbehaviour or does not suffer from any incapacity, no further steps should be taken in either House of Parliament. Section 6(2) provides that if the report of the Committee contains a finding that the Judge is guilty of any misbehaviour or suffers from any incapacity, then the motion together with the report shall be taken up for consideration by the House in which the motion is pending. Section 6(3) provides that if the motion is adopted by each House of Parliament in accordance with the provisions of Article 124(4) or, as the case may be, in accordance with that clause read with Article 218, then the misbehaviour or incapacity of the Judge shall be deemed to have been proved and an address praying for the removal of the Judge shall be presented in the prescribed manner to the President by each House of Parliament in the same session in which the motion has been adopted.Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India (supra), a larger Bench of seven Judges considered whether passport of the petitioner could be impounded without giving her notice and opportunity of hearing. Bhagwati, J, speaking for himself and for Untwalia and Fazal Ali, JJ, gave a new dimension to the rule of audi alteram partem and declared that an action taken in violation of that rule is arbitrary and violative of Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution. The learned Judge referred to Ridge v. Baldwin (1964) AC 40, State of Orissa v. Dr.(Miss) Binapani Dei (supra), re H.K.(An Infant) (supra) and A.K. Kraipak v. Union of India (supra) and observed:The audi alteram partem rule is intended to inject justice into the law and it cannot be applied to defeat the ends of justice, or to make the law lifeless, absurd, stultifying, self-defeating or plainly contrary to the common sense of the situation. Since the life of the law is not logic but experience and every legal proposition must, in the ultimate analysis, be tested on the touchstone of pragmatic realism, the audi alteram partem rule would, by the experiential test, be excluded, if importing the right to be heard has the effect of paralysing the administrative process or the need for promptitude or the urgency of the situation so demands. But at the same time it must be remembered that this is a rule of vital importance in the field of administrative law and it must not be jettisoned save in very exceptional circumstances where compulsive necessity so demands. It is a wholesome rule designed to secure the rule of law and the court should not be too ready to eschew it in its application to a given case. True it is that in questions of this kind a fanatical or doctrinaire approach should be avoided, but that does not mean that merely because the traditional methodology of a formalised hearing may have the effect of stultifying the exercise of the statutory power, the audi alteram partem should be wholly excluded. The court must make every effort to salvage this cardinal rule to the maximum extent permissible in a given case. It must not be forgotten that natural justice is pragmatically flexible and is amenable to capsulation under the compulsive pressure of circumstances.e audi alteram partem rule is not cast in a rigid mould and judicial decisions establish that it may suffer situational modifications. The core of it must, however, remain, namely, that the person affected must have a reasonable opportunity of being heard and the hearing must be a genuine hearing and not an empty public relations exerciseA fair opportunity of being heard following immediately upon the order impounding the passport would satisfy the mandate of natural justice and a provision requiring giving of such opportunity to the person concerned can and should be read by implication in the Passports Act, 1967. If such a provision were held to be incorporated in the Passports Act, 1967 by necessary implication, as we hold it must be, the procedure prescribed by the Act for impounding a passport would be right, fair and just and it would not suffer from the vice of arbitrariness or unreasonableness. We must, therefore, hold that the procedure established by the Passports Act, 1967 for impounding a passport is in conformity with the requirement of Article 21 and does not fall foul of that article.In this case, we are concerned with the application of first of the two principles of natural justice recognized by the traditional English Law, i.e., Nemo debet esse judex in propria causa. This principle consists of the rule against bias or interest and is based on three maxims: (i) No man shall be a judge in his own cause; (ii) Justice should not only be done, but manifestly and undoubtedly be seen to be done; and (iii) Judges, like Caesars wife should be above suspicion. The first requirement of natural justice is that the Judge should be impartial and neutral and must be free from bias. He is supposed to be indifferent to the parties to the controversy. He cannot act as Judge of a cause in which he himself has some interest either pecuniary or otherwise as it affords the strongest proof against neutrality. He must be in a position to act judicially and to decide the matter objectively. A Judge must be of sterner stuff. His mental equipoise must always remain firm and undetected. He should not allow his personal prejudice to go into the decision-making. The object is not merely that the scales be held even; it is also that they may not appear to be inclined. If the Judge is subject to bias in favour of or against either party to the dispute or is in a position that a bias can be assumed, he is disqualified to act as a Judge, and the proceedings will be vitiated. This rule applies to the judicial and administrative authorities required to act judicially or quasi-judiciallyThe principles which emerge from the aforesaid decisions are that no man can be a Judge in his own cause and justice should not only be done, but manifestly be seen to be done. Scales should not only be held even but it must not be seen to be inclined. A person having interest in the subject matter of cause is precluded from acting as a Judge. To disqualify a person from adjudicating on the ground of interest in the subject matter of lis, the test of real likelihood of the bias is to be applied. In other words, one has to enquire as to whether there is real danger of bias on the part of the person against whom such apprehension is expressed in the sense that he might favour or disfavour a party. In each case, the Court has to consider whether a fair minded and informed person, having considered all the facts would reasonably apprehend that the Judge would not act impartially. To put it differently, the test would be whether a reasonably intelligent man fully apprised of all the facts would have a serious apprehension of bias. In cases of non-pecuniary bias, the `real likelihood test has been preferred over the `reasonable suspicion test and the Courts have consistently held that in deciding the question of bias one has to take into consideration human probabilities and ordinary course of human conduct. We may add that real likelihood of bias should appear not only from the materials ascertained by the complaining party, but also from such other facts which it could have readily ascertained and easily verified by making reasonable inquiries.It is not in dispute that respondent No.3 participated in the seminar organised by the Bar Association of India of which he was Vice-President. He demanded public inquiry into the charges levelled against the petitioner before his elevation as a Judge of this Court. During the seminar, many eminent advocates spoke against the proposed elevation of the petitioner on the ground that there were serious allegations against him. Thereafter, respondent No.3 drafted a resolution opposing elevation of the petitioner as a Judge of this Court. He along with other eminent lawyers met the then Chief Justice of India. These facts could give rise to reasonable apprehension in the mind of an intelligent person that respondent No.3 was likely to be biased. A reasonable, objective and informed person may say that respondent No.3 would not have opposed elevation of the petitioner if he was not satisfied that there was some substance in the allegations levelled against him. It is true that the Judges and lawyers are trained to be objective and have the capacity to decipher grain from the chaff, truth from the falsehood and we have no doubt that respondent No.3 possesses these qualities. We also agree with the Committee that objection by both sides perhaps alone apart from anything else is sufficient to confirm his impartiality. However, the issue of bias of respondent No.3 has not to be seen from the view point of this Court or for that matter the Committee. It has to be seen from the angle of a reasonable, objective and informed person. What opinion he would form! It is his apprehension which is of paramount importance. From the facts narrated in the earlier part of the judgment it can be said that petitioners apprehension of likelihood of bias against respondent No.3 is reasonable and not fanciful, though, in fact, he may not be biased.While deciding this issue, we have to keep in mind that the petitioner is not a layperson. He is well-versed in law and possesses a legally trained mind. Further, for the last 15 years, the petitioner has held constitutional posts of a Judge and then as Chief Justice of the High Court. It is not the pleaded case of the petitioner that he had no knowledge about the seminar organized by the Bar Association of India on 28.11.2009 which was attended by eminent advocates including two former Attorney Generals and in which respondent No.3 made a speech opposing his elevation to this Court and also drafted resolution for the said purpose. The proceedings of the seminar received wide publicity in the print and electronic media. Therefore, it can be said that much before constitution of the Committee, the petitioner had become aware of the fact that respondent No.3, who, as per the petitioners own version, had appreciated his work on the Bench and had sent congratulatory message when his name was cleared by the Collegium for elevation to this Court, had participated in the seminar and made speech opposing his elevation and also drafted resolution for the said purpose. The Chairman had appointed respondent No.3 as member of the Committee keeping in view his long experience as an eminent advocate and expertise in the field of constitutional law. The constitution of the Committee was notified in the Official Gazette dated 15.1.2010 and was widely publicised by almost all newspapers. Therefore, it can reasonably be presumed that the petitioner had become aware about the constitution of the Committee, which included respondent No.3, in the month of January, 2010. In his representation dated 12.5.2010, the petitioner claimed that he came to know about the constitution and composition of the Committee through the print and electronic media. Thus, at least on 12.5.2010 he was very much aware that respondent No.3 had been appointed as a member of the Committee. Notwithstanding this, he did not raise any objection apparently because after meeting respondent No.3 on 6.12.2009 at the latters residence, the petitioner felt satisfied that the said respondent had nothing against him. Therefore, belated plea taken by the petitioner that by virtue of his active participation in the meeting held by the Bar Association of India, respondent No.3 will be deemed to be biased against him does not merit acceptance. It is also significant to note that respondent No.3 had nothing personal against the petitioner. He had taken part in the seminar as Vice-President of the Association. The concern shown by senior members of the Bar including respondent No.3 in the matter of elevation of the petitioner, who is alleged to have misused his position as a Judge and as Chief Justice of the High Court for material gains was not actuated by ulterior motive. They genuinely felt that the allegations made against the petitioner need investigation. After the seminar, respondent No.3 is not shown to have done anything which may give slightest impression to any person of reasonable prudence that he was ill-disposed against the petitioner. Rather, as per the petitioners own statement, he had met respondent No.3 at the latters residence on 6.12.2009 and was convinced that the latter had nothing against him. This being the position, it is not possible to entertain the petitioners plea that constitution of the Committee should be declared nullity on the ground that respondent No.3 is biased against him and order dated 24.4.2011 be quashed47. The issue deserves to be considered from another angle. Admittedly, the petitioner raised the plea of bias only after receiving notice dated 16.3.2011 which was accompanied by statement of charges and the lists of documents and witnesses. The petitioners knowledgeful silence in this regard for a period of almost ten months militates against the bona fides of his objection to the appointment of respondent No.3 as member of the Committee. A person on the petitioners standing can be presumed to be aware of his right to raise an objection. If the petitioner had slightest apprehension that respondent No.3 had pre-judged his guilt or he was otherwise biased, then, he would have on the first available opportunity objected to his appointment as member of the Committee. The petitioner could have done so immediately after publication of notification dated 15.1.2010. He could have represented to the Chairman that investigation by a Committee of which respondent No.3 was a member will not be fair and impartial because the former had already presumed him to be guilty. We cannot predicate the result of the representation but such representation would have given an opportunity to the Chairman to consider the grievance made by the petitioner and take appropriate decision as he had done in March, 2010 when respondent No.3 had sought recusal from the Committee in the wake of demand made by a section of the Bar which had erroneously assumed that the petitioner had consulted respondent No.3. However, the fact of the matter is that the petitioner never thought that respondent No.3 was prejudiced or ill-disposed against him and this is the reason why he did not raise objection till April, 2011 against the inclusion of respondent No.3 in the Committee. This leads to an irresistible inference that the petitioner had waived his right to object to the appointment of respondent No.3 as member of the Committee. The right available to the petitioner to object to the appointment of respondent No.3 in the Committee was personal to him and it was always open to him to waive the same.50. In Dhirendra Nath Gorai v. Sudhir Chandra AIR 1964 SC 1300 , a three Judge Bench of this Court considered the question whether the sale made without complying with Section 35 of the Code of the Bengal Money Lenders Act, 1940 was nullity and whether the objection against the violation of that section could be waived. After examining the relevant provisions, the Court held:A waiver is an intentional relinquishment of a known right, but obviously an objection to jurisdiction cannot be waived, for consent cannot give a court jurisdiction where there is none. Even if there is inherent jurisdiction, certain provisions cannot be waived. Maxwell in his book On the Interpretation of Statutes, 11th Edn., a p. 357, describes the rule thus:Another maxim which sanctions the non-observance of a statutory provision is that cuilibet licet renuntiare juri pro se introducto. Everyone has a right to waive and to agree to waive the advantage of a law or rule made solely for the benefit and protection of the individual in his private capacity, which may be dispensed with without infringing any public right or public policy.e same rule is restated in Craies on Statute Law, 6th Edn., at p. 269, thus:As a general rule, the conditions imposed by statutes which authorise legal proceedings are treated as being indispensable to giving the court jurisdiction. But if it appears that the statutory conditions were inserted by the legislature simply for the security or benefit of the parties to the action themselves, and that no public interests are involved, such conditions will not be considered as indispensable, and either party may waive them without affecting the jurisdiction of the court.. In conclusion, we hold that belated raising of objection against inclusion of respondent No.3 in the Committee under Section 3(2) appears to be a calculated move on the petitioners part. He is an intelligent person and knows that in terms of Rule 9(2)(c) of the Judges (Inquiry) Rules, 1969, the Presiding Officer of the Committee is required to forward the report to the Chairman within a period of three months from the date the charges framed under Section 3(3) of the Act were served upon him. Therefore, he wants to adopt every possible tactic to delay the submission of report which may in all probability compel the Committee to make a request to the Chairman to extend the time in terms of proviso to Rule 9(2)(c). This Court or, for that reason, no Court can render assistance to the petitioner in a petition filed with the sole object of delaying finalisation of the inquiry.