After the recent hikes in salaries and perks of Central Government staff as per the recommendations of the Sixth Pay Commission, the Centre is set to clear a proposal of the higher judiciary for a three-fold raise in salary and perks to the Chief Justice of India, Supreme Court judges as well as to the Chief Justices and judges of High Courts.
If the move gets the approval of the Parliament — salaries of higher judiciary are governed by Acts of Parliament — the CJI’s monthly salary with go up from Rs 33,000 to Rs 1.10 lakh while that of his brother-judges and CJs of High Courts will increase to Rs 1 lakh from the present 30,000. Sitting judges of the HCs will get Rs 90,000 as against the present Rs 26,000.
Such a raise is what was recommended by a three-judge panel set up by the Chief Justice of India and comprising Justices Ashok Bhan and Justice Altamas Kabir of the Supreme Court and Madras High Court Chief Justice A P Shah.
In its report to the CJI, the committee said: “In deciding the salaries of judges we should take into account not only the cost of living but also the earnings by members of the Bar, so as to appoint competent judges with impeccable integrity…Judges in our country are highly underpaid as compared not only to compensation paid to judges in other countries but also to the income of a averagely-successful lawyer”.
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Tarun Reflex 