National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC)
Context:
The Chief Justice of India has orally stated that the Supreme Court will consider a plea seeking to revive the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) and end the existing Collegium system of judicial appointments.
The plea argues that striking down the NJAC in 2015 was a great wrong that substituted the will of the people with the opinion of judges.
About NJAC:
It was established through the Constitution (99th Amendment) Act, 2014 and the NJAC Act, 2014 to replace the Collegium system for appointing judges to the Supreme Court and High Courts.
The amendment added Article 124A to the Constitution, providing for the commission's creation.
The NJAC was proposed as a six-member body consisting of:
Chief Justice of India (Chairperson)
Two senior-most Supreme Court Judges
Union Minister of Law and Justice
Two eminent persons (nominated by a committee comprising the Prime Minister, the CJI, and the Leader of the Opposition or the leader of the single largest Opposition party in the Lok Sabha)
Status:
In 2015, a Supreme Court Constitution Bench declared the 99th Constitutional Amendment and the NJAC Act unconstitutional and void.
The bench cited threats to judicial independence.
This verdict revived the Collegium system.