Recusal is not to be Forced: Justice Arun Mishra

New Delhi: A five-judge Constitution Bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra has said that “recusal is not to be forced by any litigant to choose a Bench stressing that “Justice Mishra will commit a grave blunder if he recuses in these circumstances. “I have taken an informed decision after considering the nitty-gritty of the points at issue, and very importantly, my conscience. In my opinion, I would be committing a grave blunder by recusal in the circumstances, on the grounds prayed for, and posterity will not forgive me down the line for setting a bad precedent,” Justice Arun Mishra said in an order delivered on Wednesday but was released on Thursday. “It is only for the interest of the judiciary (which is supreme) and the system (which is nulli secundus) that has compelled me not to recuse,” Justice Mishra said, whose opinion was supported by other four judges on the Bench.

The Bench, which comprises Justices Indira Banerjee, Vineet Sharan, M. R. Shah, and S. Ravindra Bhat, said that there is no legal impediment or bar to Justice Mishra’s participation to hearing the reference on the merits in the present Bench. “We notice that his order has cited several previous instances where judges who rendered decisions in smaller bench compositions, also participated in larger bench formations when the reasoning (in such previous decisions) was doubted, and the issue referred to larger benches, for authoritative pronouncement,” the other four judges collectively said. Justice Mishra said that it should be up to the judges to decide on recusal. (IANS)

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