Supreme Court Says Collegium Decisions Beyond Judicial Review, Refuses To Interfere In Selections

Published 23 June 2026 · politics

Supreme Court Says Collegium Decisions Beyond Judicial Review, Refuses To Interfere In Selections Published By, Last Updated: June 23, 2026, 07:31 IST Supreme Court declined

Supreme Court Says Collegium Decisions Beyond Judicial Review, Refuses To Interfere In Selections Published By, Last Updated: June 23, 2026, 07:31 IST Supreme Court declined to hear a Himachal judicial officer's plea over HC elevation, stressing collegium recommendations are confidential and based on subjective assessment. Supreme Court of India (Photo: PTI) The Supreme Court on Monday declined to entertain a petition filed by a Himachal Pradesh judicial officer challenging the collegium process for elevation of judges to the High Court, observing that judicial appointments are matters of the collegium’s “subjective satisfaction" and cannot be subjected to directions from the court on its judicial side. A bench of Justices BV Nagarathna and Joymalya Bagchi made the observations while hearing a plea by Arvind Malhotra, currently serving as Principal Judge, Family Court, Dharamshala. Malhotra had alleged that the Himachal Pradesh High Court Collegium had ignored his candidature and instead recommended officers junior to him for appointment as judges of the High Court. The petitioner argued through Senior Advocate Balbir Singh that despite being among the senior-most judicial officers in the state, his name was not forwarded, while the names of his juniors were ultimately approved by the Supreme Court Collegium. During the hearing, the bench repeatedly emphasised that the court could not intervene in the collegium’s decision-making process.

“These are matters where ultimately it is the subjective satisfaction of the collegium of the High Court. Can, on the judicial side, the Supreme Court say to the collegium, ‘you do this, you do that, you consider his name’? It can’t be done. It is beyond the scope of the jurisdiction," Justice Nagarathna observed. The court noted that there was nothing on record to indicate that the High Court Collegium had formally rejected Malhotra’s candidature. Singh submitted that the petitioner had been called for an interaction and asked to furnish documents, but before any further action, the names of his juniors were recommended for elevation. However, Justice Nagarathna pointed out that the developments cited by the petitioner suggested that his candidature had in fact been considered. “There is no rejection of your candidature at this stage. Please wait, let’s see what the collegium there will do. There may not be any rejection of your candidature," she said. The bench also rejected the argument that seniority alone entitled a judicial officer to be elevated to the High Court. “Merely because you are high in seniority, you are not entitled to be recommended," Justice Nagarathna remarked. A significant part of the hearing focused on the confidentiality of collegium deliberations.