TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee refutes VP Jagdish Dhankhar's criticism of SC’s NJAC ruling

NEW DELHI: Trinamool Congress Lok Sabha member

Kalyan Banerjee

has refuted Vice President

Jagdish Dhankhar

's criticism of Supreme Court's decision to strike down the

NJAC Act

saying, no

Constitutional authority

can criticise or find fault with the judgement of the Supreme Court, going by the Constitution. The TMC leader also said all policy decisions should be discussed on the floor of the House and not in antechambers which is in “derogation of high standards of parliamentary practice.”
Referring to Dhankhar comments on “supremacy of the Parliament,” Banerjee told TOI on Wednesday, “No constitutional authority can criticise or find fault with the judgement of the Supreme Court. Under Article 144 of the Constitution, every constitutional authority has to act in aid of the Supreme Court not in derogation… therefore, these criticisms from the constitutional authority of judgement of the Supreme Court, is not acceptable.”
Tuesday’s deliberations were held against the backdrop of demand in both Houses of Parliament for a discussion over the alleged recovery of cash from Justice Varma's official residence.
Dhankhar had said in RS, the country would have been spared of the scandal of alleged recovery of cash from a judge's official residence, if the NJAC Act had not been struck down by SC in 2015, adding, “It concerns the sovereignty and supremacy of Parliament and whether at all we are relevant.”

Without naming the VP and the chairman of Rajya Sabha, Banerjee was also critical of the deliberations being held in Dhankhar’s chamber rather than on the floor of the House, that TMC members had demanded. “Any policy decision or legislative policy should be discussed on the floor of Parliament and not in the antechambers,” Banerjee said. “This practice of discussion in respect of policies in antechamber of a constitutional authority is in derogation of high standards of parliamentary practice,” the senior TMC leader added.
At a meeting with political parties, Dhankhar had invited representatives of political parties to come together on the issue. Earlier, speaking in Rajya Sabha, he described the NJAC Act, enacted in 2014 with unanimous support with a view to end the monopoly of the Supreme Court collegium over appointment of judges of SC and HCs, as a "visionary step". Dhankhar faulted the Apex Court's decision to quash the law.
Criticising the SC's decision to strike down the NJAC Act, Dhankhar had said in RS, "There is no constitutional provision of review or appeal of a constitutional amendment. If there is a legislation (passed) by Parliament or state legislatures, judicial review can take place only on whether it is in conformity with the constitutional provisions."