Collegium: Why Are Madras Bar Members Opposing Bid To Promote BJP-Linked Lawyer?

Lawyers claim that elevation of advocate Lekshmana Chandra Victoria Gowri to HC judge will dent justice delivery.

The advocates have flagged hate speeches allegedly made by Lekshmana Chandra Victoria Gowri, a self-professed BJP member, against Muslims and Christians.

(Image: The Quint)

The Supreme Court Collegium – a three-judge Supreme Court committee – has recommended advocate Lekshmana Chandra Victoria Gowri, a member of Tamil Nadu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), to be appointed as a judge in the Madras High Court. However, this recommendation has drawn flak from some members of the Madras Bar Association.

What happened? On 17 January 2023, Victoria Gowri was recommended by the Collegium. On 1 February, 22 advocates of the Madras High Court Bar wrote to President Draupadi Murmu and the Supreme Court Collegium demanding that the Collegium withdraw its recommendation and that the President return the file recommending Gowri’s appointment.

Why is Gowri’s candidature facing opposition? There are two main reasons why Gowri is facing the heat.

1. Gowri is thought to have overt political leanings. She was appointed state in-charge of the BJP's Kerala Mahila Morcha, or women’s wing, on 8 October 2010.

   She campaigned for the national party in the run-up to the 2014 general election in Tamil Nadu. Since the Supreme Court Collegium’s recommendation is sent to the union government for approval, it is alleged, her appointment in Madras HC could be politically inclined.

2. Gowri is widely criticised for her alleged "hate speeches" against religious minorities, namely Muslims and Christians.

   She reportedly said:

"If the Islamic terror is green terror, the Christian terror is white terror."

Lekshmana Chandra Victoria Gowri

"Both (Christian groups and Islamic groups) are equally dangerous in the context of conversion, especially Love Jihad."

Lekshmana Chandra Victoria Gowri

How some members of Madras Bar responded: According to the Madras Bar members who wrote to the President, Gowri cannot be a judge because her alleged inherent bias could stand in the way of justice.

They wrote:

"Can a litigant belonging to Muslim of Christian community ever hope to get justice in her court, if she becomes a judge?"

Signatories of the Letter to the President

Why is this a blow to the Collegium system?

Through a system known as the "Collegium system," judges in India's higher courts have traditionally been chosen by their peers. The Collegium decides on appointments, elevations, and transfer of judges.

The Collegium is often criticised for allegedly being an opaque system, whose decisions go unquestioned and unscrutinised. Hence, the recommendation favouring Gowri has raised eyebrows.

Who comprise the Collegium now? The SC Collegium has the members:

1. Chief Justice of India, DY Chandrachud

2. Justice Sanjay Kishan

3. Justice KM Joseph

The big picture: Meaning, the recommendation of Gowri – who describes herself as National General Secretary of BJP Mahila Morcha – can mean that the Collegium did not take into consideration the "hate speeches" she had allegedly made in the past.

The signatories of the letter to the President wrote:

"It is extremely critical, at this juncture, to safeguard the institution from being weakened by its own administrative action."