CJI Impeachment Motion LIVE Updates: Congress Says Venkaiah's Decision 'Illegal', Will Challenge Order in SC

The Congress today slammed Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu's decision to reject the impeachment notice against CJI Dipak Misra and said the fight is between forces "rejecting democracy"  and voices "rescuing democracy". Addressing the press conference, Kapil Sibal said that they will challenge the order in Supreme Court. 

On Monday, Rajya Sabha chairman Venkaiah Naidu rejected the impeachment motion against CJI Misra by seven opposition parties. Sources said the motion was rejected on grounds that the charges were not sufficient for impeachment.

Here’s how the impeachment process works: Step 1: A removal motion signed by 100 members of Lok Sabha or 50 members of Rajya Sabha has to be submitted to the Speaker of the Lower House or Chairperson (ie Vice President) of the Upper House. This can be in either of the Houses of Parliament. Step 2: The Speaker/Chairperson can either accept or reject the motion. Step 3: If the motion is admitted, then the Speaker/ Chairperson forms a three-member committee comprising a senior judge of the Supreme Court, a judge of a high court and a distinguished jurist to investigate the charges leveled against the CJI. Step 4: If the committee supports the motion, it can be taken up for discussion. It must be passed by a special two-thirds majority of MPs in both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. 

If the motion is admitted, then the Speaker/ Chairperson forms a three-member committee comprising a senior judge of the Supreme Court, a judge of a high court and a distinguished jurist to investigate the charges leveled against the CJI: Kapil Sibal

The order is unprecedented, illegal, ill-advised and hasty. The motion moved by the by opposition parties led by the Congress for an impeachment of CJI Dipak Misra has been dismissed at a preliminary stage. It is illegal because the chairman has passed an order which is required to be passed after a full-fledged inquiry...The procedure is 50 members of Rajya Sabha move an impeachment motion of a judge then the motion has to be dealt by the Chairman, who needs to see if the motion is in order or not: Kapil Sibal

Kapil Sibal along with other members of Parliament addresses a press conference on Venkaiah Naidu's decision to reject the notice given by opposition parties led by the Congress for an impeachment of CJI Dipak Misra. Naidu held extensive consultations with top legal and constitutional experts before taking the decision, they said. The rejection of the notice comes a day after he held the consultations with such experts to determine the maintainability of the motion. The sources said Vice President Naidu met several experts after he re-scheduled his travel plans considering the seriousness of the matter.

BJP Spokesperson Sambit Patra addresses the media on Venkaiah Naidu's rejecting impeachment notice against CJI and Congress President Rahul Gandhi's save the constitution campaign

Kapil Sibal Won't Appear in Dipak Misra's Court Till the CJI Retires | Congress leader, senior advocate Kapil Sibal has said that he will not appear in the court of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dipak Misra till the latter retires. Sibal is leading the charge against Misra, whose removal was sought by the lawyer and 63 other legislators.“I will not appear in the Chief Justice's court from tomorrow onwards... till he retires, because that is consistent with the highest standards of my profession,” said Sibal to The Indian Express. “If he (the CJI) continues (in office) till he retires, and if an inquiry is set up, till he recuses. We believe in maintaining standards," he clarified.

CJI, other judges sat at 10.45 AM to undertake court proceedings | The Supreme Court judges, including Chief Justice Dipak Misra, today initiated court proceedings at 10.45 AM instead of the scheduled 10.30 AM amid speculation that they held a brief meeting on the issue of the impeachment notice against the CJI. CJI Misra, who usually holds his court at 10.30 AM, entered the courtroom almost 15 minutes late and started hearing lawyers who wanted their petitions to be listed for urgent mentioning.  BJP leader Subramanian Swamy was among the first few litigants to mention his petition for urgent hearing.  The CJI's courtroom was packed with lawyers including those who had no matters to argue for.   Besides the CJI, all other courts sat late at 10.45 AM to undertake today's court proceedings. Speculation was rife among lawyers that judges held a brief,  informal meeting before they started today's business.

In a stinging criticism of Congress, Amit Shah said how the very people who "do not trust army, the judiciary, the Supreme Court, the Election Commission, EVMs, the RBI are now saying democracy is in danger".

Swamy hails Venkaiah's decision rejecting impeachment notice | BJP leader Subramanian Swamy today hailed Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu's decision of rejecting the impeachment notice moved by the Congress and seven other opposition parties against Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dipak Misra. Naidu, the Rajya Sabha chairman, rejected the notice citing lack of substantial merit in it. "The vice president should have rejected it (impeachment notice) the day it was filed because the content of the notice was made public," Swamy told PTI after coming out of the CJI's courtroom. The BJP leader was among the first few litigants to mention their respective petitions for urgent hearing. He had mentioned for an urgent hearing of his plea seeking enforcement of his fundamental right to worship at the disputed site at Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh. "Anyway, it's a good decision," he said on the rejection of impeachment notice. 

Naidu has rightly applied his mind: Sorabjee on impeachment notice decision | Eminent jurist and former Attorney General of India Soli Sorabjee welcomed Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu's decision to reject the impeachment notice against CJI Dipak Misra, saying he has "rightly applied his mind". Sorabjee said the vice president has found no merit in the notice given by opposition parties led by the Congress for impeachment and has consulted legal experts before arriving at the decision. "The vice president has applied his mind. He has consulted legal experts and has come to a decision. We did not want the matter hanging indefinitely. "He (Naidu) has gone into the matter and has found no merit in it and no ground for impeachment, therefore, he rejected it," Sorabjee told a TV channel. When asked about the procedure ahead if the opposition moves the apex court to challenge Naidu's decision, Sorabjee said he did not see the petition succeeding

Don't muzzle Constitution: Cong on Naidu's decision to reject impeachment notice | The Congress today slammed Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu's decision to reject the impeachment notice against CJI Dipak Misra and said the fight is between forces "rejecting democracy"  and voices "rescuing democracy". AICC media-in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala said that within hours of 64 MPs submitting the impeachment notice, Arun Jaitley, the Leader of Rajya Sabha, had expressed "naked prejudice" by calling it a revenge petition "virtually dictating the verdict" to the Rajya Sabha chairman on that day. "If all charges were to be proved before inquiry as RS Chairman suggests, Constitution & Judges (Inquiry) Act will have no relevance. Don't muzzle Constitution "Constitutional process of impeachment is set in motion with 50 MP's giving the motion. RS Chairman can't adjudge the motion, for he has no mandate to decide the merits of the motion. This is truly a fight between forces 'Rejecting Democracy' & voices 'Rescuing Democracy'," Surjewala said. In a tweet, Congress spokesperson and lawyer Abhishek Manu Singhvi said Naidu "expectedly" rejected the impeachment motion against Chief Justice Misra and that too within a day of his return to Delhi. Welcoming the decision, BJP spokesperson Meenakshi Lekhi said the vice-president, who is also the ex-officio chairman of the Rajya Sabha, applied his mind and gave a detailed order.

Saving The Constitution or Saving the Dynasty? Amit Shah Takes a Dig at Rahul's Rally in Delhi |  BJP President Amit Shah on Monday termed Congress’s 'Save the Constitution' rally a “farce that seeks to perpetuate the rule of the dynasty over the rule of democracy”. Congress’s rally addresses the apprehensions within the Schedule Castes and Schedule Tribes against any slacking of strong bail provisions in the Prevention of Dalit Atrocities Act. It addresses any fears of reservation provisions in the Constitution being tinkered with. And issues concerning security concerns of the religious minorities.

Vice president only statutory authority to reject impeachment notice: F S Nariman | Eminent jurist Fali S Nariman today said the issues raised in the impeachment notice against CJI Dipak Misra were not of "sufficient gravity and rightly rejected" by Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu. Nariman said Naidu, the chairman of the Rajya Sabha, was the only statutory authority to take the decision on the notice. The notice was moved by the Congress and seven other opposition parties against the Chief Justice of India (CJI) last week. "He (Naidu) was the only statutory authority to take that decision and in my view, he has rightly taken the decision. The grounds raised in the impeachment notice are not of sufficient gravity. "When you have a man like the chief justice of the Supreme Court, it (impeachment notice) has to have something that is far more important than just saying he did not do this or that. The vice president has the statutory authority and he has rightly rejected the notice," Nariman told a TV channel. 

Opposition can't succeed in Supreme Court against VP's decision on impeachment: Soli | Eminent jurist Soli Sorabjee today said the Congress-led opposition had no chance to succeed in the Supreme Court against Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu's decision rejecting impeachment notice against Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra. When asked about the procedure ahead if the opposition moves the apex court to challenge the decision of Naidu, Rajya Sabha chairman, Sorabjee said "I don't see chances of the writ petition (challenging the Naidu's decision) succeeding," he said. Reacting to Naidu's order rejecting the impeachment notice against the CJI moved by 64 MPs,  the former Attorney General of India said that the RS chairman has "applied his mind" after consulting legal experts on the issue. "The vice president has applied his mind. He has consulted legal experts and has come to a decision. We did not want the matter hanging indefinitely.

Venkaiah Naidu rejects impeachment notice against CJI | Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu today rejected the notice given by opposition parties led by the Congress for an impeachment of CJI Dipak Misra citing lack of substantial merit in it, sources said.  Naidu held extensive consultations with top legal and constitutional experts before taking the decision, they said. The rejection of the notice comes a day after he held the consultations with such experts to determine the maintainability of the motion. The sources said Vice President Naidu met several experts after he re-scheduled his travel plans considering the seriousness of the matter. Seven opposition parties led by the Congress had last week moved a notice before him for an impeachment of the Chief Justice of India (CJI) on five grounds of "misbehaviour". This is the first time ever that an impeachment notice has been filed against a sitting CJI.

Congress President Rahul Gandhi during the launches of save the Constitution campaign at Delhi's Talkatora stadium referred to  IMF chief Christine Lagarde statement where she said that she hoped that the Indian authorities starting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi would pay more attention to it. Her sharp remarks come in the backdrop of a nationwide outrage over the rape cases in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua and Uttar Pradesh's Unnao. "What has happened (in India) is just revolting. I would hope that the Indian authorities, starting with Prime Minister Modi, pay more attention because it is needed for the women of India," Lagarde said. "When I was last in Davos after Prime Minister Modi's speech, I did tell him that he had not mentioned the women of India enough. And it's not just a question of talking about them," the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund said.

The press person has asked me a question in MNREGA. I will answer it, ask this to PM Modi and you will be thrown out of the room. Even if you are against us, we will defend and support you: Congress President Rahul Gandhi during the  launches of save the Constitution campaign at Delhi's Talkatora stadium

Entire world thought that India's richness lies in its diversity. They though India's constitution, institutions, the Supreme Court had a lot of value and looked up to us. When I was in South Africa, they said India guides them. But this reputation has been destroyed by BJP. Now Minor rapes, attack minority, Dalit atrocities. They have wasted our efforts over 70 years: Congress President Rahul Gandhi during the  launches of save the Constitution campaign at Delhi's Talkatora stadium

In 2019, Indians will tell Narendra Modi their Mann Ki Baat: Congress President Rahul Gandhi during the  launches of save the Constitution campaign at Delhi's Talkatora stadium

A BJP release quoted Narendra Modi as saying that the party has managed to win over support of the rural masses as he also made a reference to the party's win in local polls in Jharkhand.