The significant step towards transparency was marked by some surprise revelations — one of the judges doesn’t own even a two-wheeler, while another has a Yamaha motorcycle as his sole vehicle. There are details of land, houses, investments in shares and flats as well.
Chief Justice of India K G Balakrishnan owns land in Kerala and Faridabad in Haryana besides a house and a flat. Interestingly, however, he has no fixed deposit or investment in shares.
In contrast, Justice S H Kapadia, the No.2 in the apex court who is in line to be the next CJI, has the bulk of his investments — Rs 22 lakh of a total of Rs 40 lakh — in shares. The rest is invested in mutual funds, fixed deposits and Provident Fund. The diverse portfolio is in keeping with Justice Kapadia’s reputation of being conversant with matters of finance.
All the judges, except Justice H S Bedi who has been out of the Capital because of bereavement, have posted their assets on the website.
The website also mentions the assets of Justice B N Agrawal even though he retired on October 10. He made a request for including his declaration, arguing that being party to the August 28 decision of the Full Court to disclose assets, he was obliged to do so.
In many cases, lists of assets, liabilities and investments are exhaustive, with the judges disclosing to the last detail jewellery and the latest value of shares in their possession. In other cases, however, the declarations are vague.
The judges had opposed the demand of disclosure, arguing that declarations could make them susceptible to harassment through frivolous litigation. The Supreme Court even opposed in Delhi High Court the January 6 order of the Central Information Commission asking the SC Registry to provide information whether judges declared their assets regularly or not.The stance changed after two HC judges came out in the open to argue for disclosure, leading to the decision by the Full Court meeting on August 28.
A note of caution for those who may rush to conclusions on the riches of judges. Most of them were successful lawyers who earned a lot as senior advocates before joining the Bench from the Bar.
The CJI and his wife own gold jewellery weighing about 20 sovereigns and a 2000 model Santro but hold no shares in any company. He has no fixed deposits. But while he may possibly be the poorest of the lot when it comes to hard cash, the CJI does have decent land holdings. He owns over 12 acres in Kanayanoor taluk (Ernakulam) in Kerala, besides family property worth Rs 3.5 lakh in Vaikom taluk, a two-bedroom flat in Ernakulam and a plot in Faridabad measuring 444 sq yards. His wife owns property in Kottayam.
Justice Kapadia, who does not own a vehicle, appears to be meticulous with his investments, worth over Rs 40 lakh, the bulk in shares. The judge also has property worth Rs 20 lakh in Mumbai and has zero liability. His wife has shares worth Rs 19 lakh at present value. Besides, she has other investments worth over Rs 13 lakh.
Justice Tarun Chatterjee owns one building in Kolkata and a two-third share in ancestral property. He and his spouse own 46 pieces of gold, diamond and pearl jewellery, while FDs and PPF amount to Rs 3.1 lakh. He has two cars, a Chevrolet Tavera and a Honda Civic, and outstanding liabilities of Rs 7.5 lakh.
Justice Altamas Kabir owns a house in Kolkata’s Salt Lake worth Rs 30.75 lakh. He and his wife possess 127.25 grams of gold and FDs and PPF worth Rs 43.97 lakh.
Justice R V Raveendran appears to be in favour of investing his money in real estate. He owns four residential and an office plot in Bangalore, while his wife has one-fifth share in three commercial properties in the city. She would also be the envy of wives of other judges as she owns 370 grams of gold jewellery, besides 12 carats of diamonds and five kilos of silver.
Justice B S Chauhan has one-third share in two ancestral residential properties in Muzaffarnagar, one-third share in agricultural land (200 bighas) and a residential building in Sector 15-A, Noida. Besides, he has investments worth Rs 9 lakh in Reliance (as mentioned in the declaration), Rs 3 lakh in HDFC, Rs 2 lakh in ABN Amro and Rs 20 lakh in PF.
Justice P Sathasivam has declared that he owns a 1989 Yamaha motorcycle. He also owns a residential plot in Chennai with a market value Rs 45,000.
In addition, he has 12.49 acres of agricultural land. His wife owns five acres.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/SC-judges-declare-assets-on-website/articleshow/5191127.cms
No comments:
Post a Comment