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Monday, Jul 20, 2009
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Moily hints at adequate safeguards for judges

Special Correspondent

CHENNAI: The Centre intends to provide adequate safeguards to protect judges against vexatious litigation in the standalone legislation that will require them to declare their assets, Union Minister of Law and Justice M.Veerappa Moily said on Sunday.

“The judiciary cannot be treated on a par with the political executive and other institutions. Independent functioning of the judiciary has to be acknowledged. Judges cannot come to the press and rebut every allegation,” he told reporters after presiding over the Congress advocates’ wing meeting at Sathyamurthy Bhavan.

The judiciary was not averse to the idea of declaring assets, he said. On the issue of appointment of judges, he said: “Deliberations are going on. I don’t want to comment on the issue. It is premature to comment. Interaction is going on with the judiciary.”

Asked about making Tamil the official language of the Madras High Court, the Minister said Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi also raised the issue when he met him in the morning.

“Many States have come out with similar requests, which are under consideration. But I cannot give a time-frame,” he said.

Mr. Moily said the government would take into consideration the view of all sections of the society before forming an opinion on Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, in the wake of the Delhi High Court decriminalising homosexuality.

“We are not in a haste to form an opinion. We will discuss the issue thoroughly before submitting our report to the Supreme Court,” he said.

On building the Congress in Tamil Nadu, Mr. Moily clarified that the Congress would not betray its allies in the process of developing itself to form the government. “We cannot betray our alliance partners because they stood by us in difficult times.” The alliance between the Congress and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam in Tamil Nadu remained intact and it would be only further strengthened.

Mr. Moily said the Congress’s strength in Tamil Nadu had been demonstrated by the fact that the alliance that the party joined came to power.

“This does not mean we have to keep quiet and take the party for granted. We need to develop it and we are in the process of doing that. We have done it in Uttar Pradesh. The day may come when the Congress can develop itself to form a government,” he said.

Asked whether the Congress would stake its claim to ministerial berths in the DMK government, he said no decision had been taken in this regard.

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