Vice President says retired judges keeping country’s arbitral system in tight fist grip

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar lamented that retired judges have kept the arbitral system of the country in a tight fist grip, denying chance to other qualified minds. File
| Photo Credit: PTI

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Saturday lamented that retired judges have kept the arbitral system of the country in a “tight fist grip”, denying chance to other qualified minds.

He suggested that the time has come when we need to introspect and move forward by bringing about necessary changes, including, if required, by legislation.

“Nowhere on the planet, in no other country, in no other system, there is such tight fist grip on the arbitral system by retired judges. In our country, this is at large,” he said.

He also lauded the “bold” remarks of Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud — a person, he said, is changing the landscape of judiciary in the country — on the arbitral system in India.

Mr. Dhankhar said the CJI reflected on the lack of diversity in appointing arbitrators. Justice Chandrachud, Mr. Dhankhar quoted, had said retired judges dominate the field.

“He goes on to add, and I salute him for this, he said while other qualified candidates are overlooked, he implied this reflects an old boys club mentality within the arbitration space,” the Vice President said.

He said the “bold” statement of Justice Chandrachud would go a long way in making the arbitral process in India “spinally strong”.

He said India is known for its rich human resources… but they are not picked up to adjudicate arbitral process.

“Time has come when we need to introspect, move forward by bringing about necessary changes, including, if required, by legislation,” he asserted.

Addressing an event of the International Court of Arbitration here, he said institutional arbitration was better than ad hoc mechanisms as it provides a sound system for reaching conclusions.

The Vice President also said there was a need to evolve a mechanism where the arbitral process does not suffer judicial interventions.

Mr. Dhankhar was of the view that when disputes last long, the legal fraternity benefits.

“But our fiscal gain cannot be at the cost national gain, national prosperity… economy will gallop… when the dispute resolution mechanism is fair equitable and conclusive,” he observed.