Supreme Court Collegium likely meet soon, may resend Justice Joseph's name back to government

According to reports, Collegium may resend its recommendation for Justice KM Joseph's elevation back to government.

Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra is understood to have decided to urgently convene a meeting of the Collegium to reconsider the name of the Uttarakhand High Court Chief Justice K M Joseph for elevation as a judge of the Supreme Court.

A Supreme Court official said it is but natural to hold the meeting of the Collegium and it will be convened as soon as possible. If the quorum is complete, the Collegium meeting will be convened immediately, the official said.

Meanwhile, Justice Joseph recently noted that Supreme Court judges cannot be selected on the basis of regional representation or the level of their seniority.

Uttarakhand High Court Chief Justice K M Joseph was not considered to be elevated as a Supreme Court judge by the Centre on Friday.

The government returned the Collegium's recommendation to elevate Justice Joseph seeking its reconsideration, saying the proposal was not in accordance with the top court's parameters and there was an adequate representation of Kerala in the higher judiciary from where he hails. 

59-year-old Justice Joseph headed the bench that had quashed the Narendra Modi government's decision to impose President's rule in the Congress-ruled hill state in 2016.

Justice Joseph has been the Chief Justice of Uttarakhand High Court since July 2014. He was appointed a permanent judge of the Kerala High Court on October 14, 2004, and had assumed charge of the Uttarakhand HC on July 31, 2014.

Meanwhile, Senior Advocate Indu Malhotra was sworn-in as a Supreme Court judge on Friday.

Malhotra becomes the first woman lawyer to be elevated directly from the Bar to the Supreme Court.

Supreme Court's Collegium in January had recommended her name for the role which was later approved by the Centre on Wednesday.