Judgment :-

Dr. B.S. Chauhan, J.

1. The issue of selection and elevation to the office of a High Court Judge has engaged the attention of this Court. The issue of such selection reflecting transparency, objectivity and constitutional sustainability has engaged the attention of this Court since this cause came to be espoused and dealt with by a nine-Judge Bench of this Court in Supreme Court Advocates-on-Record Assn. v. Union of India, (1993) 4 SCC 441, more particularly known as Second Judges case. The said decision also became a subject matter of a Presidential Reference being Special Reference No.1 of 1998 that was answered again by a nine-Judge Bench reported in (1998) 7 SCC 739.

2. One of the issues involved in both these decisions has been issue of judicial review of appointments as a High Court Judge or a Supreme Court Judge. The Second Judges case (supra) answered it in paragraphs 480 to 482 of the aforesaid decision and the Special Reference also answered the same emphasising the limited scope of judicial review and restrained the justiciability of such recommendations and appointment of Judges.

3. More recently, the issue with regard to the elevation of a High Court Judge on a