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Katju lovin' parliament censure, as Jaitley says NJAC-cheerleader evidence of broken collegium

Both houses of parliament have now condemned former Supreme Court judge Markandey Katju for his blog post calling Mahatma Gandhi and Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, British and Japanese agents, respectively.

Rajya Sabha leader Arun Jaitley used the opportunity to call out Katju as evidence of the broken collegium system of appointing judges - a “weakness of the present system which we are trying to change”, reported the Indian Express.

Katju was ironically one of the most outspoken opponents of the collegium system while the public debate around the government replacing it with the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) was at its height.

Last summer, Katju had blogged about a series of alleged instances of corruption against a swathe of the judiciary.

Meanwhile, Katju has responded to parliament’s censure on his blog:

Beautiful ! So the Lok Sabha too has passed a resolution condemning me, after the condemnation by the Rajya Sabha. I seem to be becoming another Prynne, or Pym or John Wilkes or Junius ( I wonder whether the Hon’ble Members of the House have ever heard of them ).

Now the serious question is about my punishment. One Hon’ble member suggested that an FI R, should be lodged against me. But under which provision of the Indian Penal Code ? Surely the House cannot order my ears to be cut off, as was done in the case of Prynne ?

. I can imagine the Hon’ble members scratching their heads and feverishly turning the pages of the Penal Code trying to find some section which will incriminate me. May I make a humble suggestion to them ? There is an Act called the Lunatics Act, which will be most appropriate for me..I am sure that will serve the purpose

Following the Rajya Sabha censure, he blogged:

O wonderful news ! The Rajya Sabha ( the upper House of the Indian Parliament ) has passed a resolution condemning me !

But of course that is not enough. I must also be punished for what I said about that fake who is called the Father of the Indian Nation, and that agent of the Japanese fascists. A mere censure is no punishment.

So some of them wanted to strip me of the perks and facilities I have as a retired Supreme Court Judge. But then again that will require amendment of the rules, because after all I am indeed a retired Supreme Court Judge.

May I make a humble.suggestion to the Hon’ble Members of the House ( because evidently they have run out of ideas ). Just pass a resolution that immediately on my return to India I will be arrested and hanged, drawn and quartered.without any trial. Na rahe baans na baje baansuri !

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