Date:22/09/2006 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/09/22/stories/2006092208941500.htm

National

Law Commission to be recast

J. Venkatesan

It will have a chairman, 3 full-time members Chairman and three full-time members might be either serving or retired Judges of the Supreme Court or of High Courts or legal experts, jurists or professors of law in any university of India

NEW DELHI: The Union Cabinet on Thursday decided to reconstitute the Law Commission with effect from September 1 for a three-year period. The term of the 17th Law Commission, headed by Justice M. Jagannadha Rao, ended on August 31.

The Cabinet approved the constitution of the 18th panel, with one chairman, three full-time members, one member secretary and three or more part-time members depending upon the nature of the topics. Normally, a retired Supreme Court judge heads it.

The Government said the chairman and three full-time members might be either serving or retired judges of the Supreme Court or of High Courts or legal experts, jurists or professors of law in any university of India.

The member secretary should belong to the Indian Legal Service and hold a post of not below the rank of Additional Secretary.

The part-time specialist members could be appointed from among eminent members of the bar or eminent scholars in the academic field or persons having specialised knowledge in the branch of law related to the topics under consideration.

`Confidentiality clause'

With the right to information law in vogue, the Cabinet decided to delete the `confidentiality clause' relating to the constitution of the earlier two commissions introduced under the NDA regime.

Under the clause "the reports of the Commission are laid on the table of each House of Parliament and until reports are so laid, the same are treated as confidential."

In view of this clause, the commissions were not able to make public their reports till they were placed in Parliament. This evoked a sharp reaction from various quarters and there was a demand to remove the clause. The Cabinet has now recommended that it be deleted.

More allowance

The Cabinet also approved a proposal to amend the Supreme Court Judges Rules, 1959, allowing a consolidated amount of Rs. 14,000 to retired Judges of the Supreme Court, in place of the present allowance of Rs. 4,000 for engaging an orderly and for defraying secretarial assistance on contract basis.