A day after the Delhi High Court refused to entertain the plea seeking recusal of Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma in the excise policy case, AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal struck a cautious note, saying he would study the order before reacting. Speaking to ANI in Chennai, he said,"I was here yesterday. I have to go back and read the order. I made my submissions in the court, so I would not like to comment beyond that."
Delhi High Court judge Swarana Kanta Sharma on Mondayrefused to recuseherself from hearing the liquor-policy case as she rejected the pleas of AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal and others for her withdrawal. In the pronouncement that lasted for more than an hour, Justice Sharma said a litigant cannot be allowed to judge a judge without any material, and judges cannot recuse themselves to satisfy a litigant's unfounded apprehension of bias.
“This court will stand up for itself and the institution.... I will not recuse,” the judge said. She added that “a politician cannot be permitted to cross the boundary and sit in judgment over the competence of a judge”.
The court emphasised that allegations made in the recusal pleas were based on “aspersions, insinuations and doubts” without supporting evidence. It warned that allowing such pleas could open the door for “powerful litigants to attack judges” and encourage forum shopping.
“The application seeking recusal are, therefore, rejected and in this rejection, this court affirms its fidelity to the Constitution on behalf of myself and every judge who stands by it. Justice lies not in shielding under pressure, but in doing justice of objectively,” she said.
“A litigant cannot dictate how the children or family members of a judge are to live their lives. Whether they must rise through their own struggles and hard work or whether they should be prevented from doing so. In the absence of any proof beyond doubt that the office of the judge has been misused for the benefit of her children or family, even a whisper of such allegation cannot be permitted,” she said.
She further noted that “a false imputation, even if repeated 1,000 times in a court or on social media, does not become the truth.”
In a separate development, Justice Sharma recused herself from hearing a bail plea of former AAP MLA Naresh Balyan in a different case, directing that the matter be listed before another judge.
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Sudhanshu Mishra is a Senior Copy Editor at Times Now. While his day-to-day work centres on news, his writing interests lie in the intersections of cu...View More
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