Face off between Govt & Supreme court: No case is too small, says Chief Justice

way2barak, Dec.17: Days after Law Minister Kiren Rijiju commented that the Supreme Court will be burdened if it hears “bail pleas and all frivolous PILs”, Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud on Friday said, “No case is too small for the Supreme Court.” The CJI added, “If we do not act in matters of personal liberty and grant relief, then what are we doing here?”.

On Wednesday, Rijiju told the Parliament that the apex court should only hear constitutional matters instead of bail applications to avoid high pendency of cases. He has also been at odds with the top court over the appointment of judges and favoured the National Judicial Appointment Commission, a proposed government body that would have replaced the collegium system of judges’ recruitments. It was struck down by the apex court in 2015 terming it unconstitutional.