JUDGMENT

L. Nageswara Rao, J.

This Court is once again, within the span of a year, called upon to decide the constitutionality of various provisions concerning the selection, appointment, tenure, conditions of service, and ancillary matters relating to various tribunals, 19 in number, which act in aid of the judicial branch. That the judicial system and this Court in particular has to live these deja vu moments, time and again (exemplified by no less than four constitution bench judgments) in the last 8 years, speaks profound volumes about the constancy of other branches of governance, in their insistence regarding these issues. At the heart of this, however, are stakes far greater: the guarantee of the rule of law to each citizen of the country, with the concomitant guarantee of equal protection of the law. This judgment is to be read as a sequel, and together with the decision of the Constitution Bench in Rojer Mathew vs. South Indian Bank Limited, (2020) 6 SCC 1.

2. The core controversy arising for this Court's consideration is the constitutional validity of the "Tribunal, Appellate Tribunal and other Authorities [Qualification, Experience and Other Conditions of Service of Members