SC Collegium suggests transfer of Gujarat HC judge involved in Rahul Gandhi's defamation case Justice H.M. Prachchhak

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• Aug 11, 2023 | Poonam Nath

Justice Prachchhak is one of nine High Court justices suggested for transfer by the Collegium for...

Digital Desk: The Supreme Court Collegium has suggested that Justice H.M. Prachchhak of the Gujarat High Court be transferred to the Patna High Court for "better administration of justice."

Justice Prachchhak had refused to stay Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's two-year conviction in a criminal defamation action filed by Gujarat BJP member Purnesh Modi over remarks about the 'Modi surname' during a political rally in 2019. The conviction was stayed by a Supreme Court Bench led by Justice B.R. Gavai, a member of the Supreme Court's Collegium.

Justice Prachchhak is one of nine High Court justices suggested for transfer by the Supreme Court Collegium in a resolution passed on August 3 and released late Thursday.

Justices A.Y. Kogje, K. Gita Gopi, and Samir J. Dave were also recommended for transfer in the same batch to Allahabad, Madras, and Rajasthan, respectively.

The Collegium further suggested that Justice V.K. Singh of the Allahabad High Court be transferred to Madras, as well as Justices A.S. Sangwan, Avneesh Jhingan, R.M. Singh, and Arun Monga of the Punjab and Haryana High Courts be transferred to Allahabad, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan, respectively.

Other Plea Rejection

The top court Collegium has also advised that Justice Duppala Venkata Ramana, a judge on the High Court of Andhra Pradesh, be transferred to the High Court of Madhya Pradesh. His bid for a transfer to the Karnataka High Court was denied by the Collegium.

It has also recommended relocating Justice Rajendra Kumar-IV of the Allahabad High Court to Madhya Pradesh. The Collegium turned down his request to postpone his relocation for six months.

The Collegium recommended that Justice S.P. Kesarwani be transferred from Allahabad High Court to Calcutta, but refused to revisit the decision.

It advocated relocating Andhra Pradesh High Court Judge C. Manavendranath Roy to Gujarat. His transfer request to Telangana was denied.

Justice Prakash Padia, an Allahabad High Court judge, has been recommended for transfer to Jharkhand. His proposal for relocation to Madhya Pradesh, Patna, or Uttarakhand was denied. All transfers, including that of Justice Prachchhak, were made in the name of "better administration of justice."