Prior to independence the District Judge invariably used to be Member of Indian Civil Service and his position in the District was superior to that of the District Magistrate. The Magistrates also used to hold a dignified position in the services. After independence framers of the Constitution in order to maintain the dignity of the trial Judiciary provided for All India Judicial Service so that the service conditions of the cadre of District Judges should be distinctly formulated. This desire of the framers of the Constitution is yet to be implemented. Since adaptation of the Constitution various law commissions expressed the need of having Indian Judicial Service. However as the Administration of Justice and organisation of Court was a State subject, nothing could be done in this regard.
The service conditions of the judges deteriorated and continue to deteriorate. The District Judge, who initially was a dignified officer enjoying more respect and power than the Collector of the District has now become an Officer enjoying huge Judicial powers and officiating duties but not having any sort of amenities such as vehicle for conveyance, sufficient staff for administration and sufficient funds to run the office in dignified manner. Position of a judge at grass root level was worst. The judges however continued to impart their duties in a dignified manner to deliver justice in this difficult situation.
Considering the plight of judges all over India some kind hearted fine brains of Judiciary came togather to agitate the issue of poor service conditions of the Judges. All India Judges Association was formed with following objectives:
The Association was registered in 1985. Nobel executives of the Association use to come together to work out a solution. Finally in the year 1989 the historical write of 2202 of 1989 was filed before Hon'ble Apex court. Following relief were claimed in the said write;
- Uniformity in the Judicial cadres in the different States and Union Territories;
- An appropriate enhanced uniform age of retirement for the Judicial Officers throughout the country;
- Uniform pay scales as far as possible to be fixed;
- Residential accommodation to be provided to every Judicial Officer.
- Transport facility to be made available and conveyance allowance provided.
- Adequate perks by way of Library Allowance, Residential Office Allowance, and Sumptuary Allowance to be provided.
- Provision for in service training to be made.
In 1991 Hon'ble Apex court delivered a Judgment recognising the need for improving service conditions of the judges all over India and granted following reliefs.
- An all India Judicial Service should be set up and the Union of India should take appropriate steps in this regard.
- Steps should be taken to bring about uniformity in designation of officers both in civil and the criminal side by 31-3-1993.
- Retirement age of judicial officers be raised to 60 years and appropriate steps are to be taken by 31-12-1992.
- As and when the Pay Commissions/ Committees are set up in the States and Union Territories, the question of appropriate pay scales of judicial officers be specifically referred and considered.
- A working library at the residence of every judicial officer has to be provided by 30-6-1992. Provision for sumptuary allowance as stated has to be made.
- Residential accommodation to every judicial officer has to be provided and until State accommodation is available, Government should provide requisitioned accommodation for them in the manner indicated by 31-12-1992. In providing residential accommodation, availability of an office room should be kept in view.
- Every District Judge and Chief Judicial Magistrate should have a State vehicle, Judicial officers in sets of 5 should have a pool vehicle and others would be entitled to suitable loans to acquire two wheeler automobiles within different time limits as specified.
- Inservice Institute should be set up within one year at the Central and State or Union Territory level.
Another three Judge Bench of the Supreme Court, in the Review Petition All India Judges’ Association v. Union of India , AIR 1993 SC 2493, delivered the judgment on 24 August 1993 modifying some of the reliefs given in the original judgment, while giving additional reliefs, P.B. Sawant J., who spoke for the Bench, inter alia, observed:
"The Judicial Service is not service in the sense of ‘employment’. The judges are not employees. As members of the judiciary they exercise the sovereign judicial power of the State. They are holders of the public offices in the same way as the members of the council of ministers and the members of the legislature. When it is said that in a democracy such as ours, the executive, the legislature and the judiciary constitute the three pillars of the State, what is intended to be conveyed is that the three essential functions of the State are entrusted to the three organs of the State and each one of them in turn represents the authority of the State. However, those who exercise the State-power are the ministers, the legislators and the judges, and not the members of their staff who implement or assist in implementing their decisions."
His Lordship continued:
"The Judges, at whatever level they may be, represent the State and its authority unlike the administrative executive or the members of the other services. The members of the other services, therefore, cannot be placed on par with the members of the judiciary, either constitutionally or functionally."
He went on:
"With the inauguration of the Constitution and the separation of the State power distributed among the three branches, the continuation of the linkage has become anachronistic and is inconsistent with the constitutional provisions. As pointed out earlier, the parity in status is no longer between the judiciary and the administrative executive but between the judiciary and the political executive. Under the Constitution, the judiciary is above the administrative executive and any attempt to place it on par with the administrative executive has to be discouraged. The failure to grasp this simple truth is responsible for the contention that the service conditions of the judiciary must be comparable to those of the administrative executive and any amelioration in the service conditions of the former must necessarily lead to the comparable improvement in the service conditions of the latter."
He pertinently remarked:
Hence the earlier approach of comparison between the service conditions of the judges and those of the administrative executive has to be abandoned and the service conditions of the judges which are wrongly linked to those of the administrative executive have to be revised to meet the special needs of the judicial service."
He also observed:
"Further, since the work of the judicial officers throughout the country is of the some nature, the service conditions have to be uniform." Finally, his Lordship emphasised:
"We have also emphasised earlier the necessity of entrusting the work of prescribing the service conditions for the judicial officers to a separate Pay Commission exclusively set up for the purpose. Hence we reiterate the importance of such separate Commission and also of the desirability of prescribing uniform pay scales to the judges all over the country. Since such pay scales will be the minimum deserved by the judicial officers, the argument that some of the States may not be able to bear the financial burden is irrelevant."
The greatest relief of all was to appoint a commission.
FNJPC was formulated with following objectives:
- To evolve the principles which should govern the structure of pay and other emoluments of Judicial Officers belonging to the Subordinate Judiciary all over the country.
- To examine the present structure of emoluments and conditions of service of Judicial Officers in the States / UTs taking into account the total packet of benefits available to them and make suitable recommendations having regard, among other relevant factors, to the existing relativities in the pay structure between the officers belonging to subordinate judicial service vis-a-vis other civil servants.
- To examine and recommend in respect of minimum qualifications, age of recruitment, method of recruitment etc., for Judicial Officers. In this context, the relevant provisions of the Constitution and direction of the Supreme Court in All India Judges Association Case and Others cases may be kept in view.
To examine the work methods and work environment as also the variety of allowances and benefits in kind that are available to Judicial Officers in addition to pay and to suggest rationalisation and simplification thereof with a view to promoting efficiency in Judicial Administration, optimising the size of the Judiciary etc. - The Commission will devise its own procedure and may appoint such advisers, institutional consultants and experts as it may consider necessary for any particular purpose. It may call for such information and take such evidence as it may consider necessary. All State Governments, UT Administrations and the Ministries / Deptts. of the Central Govt. will furnish such information, documents and other assistance as required by the Commission.
- The Commission will make its recommendations as soon as feasible. It may consider, if necessary, sending reports on any of the matters as and when the recommendations are finalised. It shall make its recommendations to the State Governments.
All India Judges Association assisted FNJPC to work out recommendations regarding betterment of Pay allowances and other service conditions of the judges.
All India Judges Association relentlessly worked for revision of pay scales and allowances of the Judges after revision of salary of the other Government employees. The association succeeded in convincing Hon’ble J. Padmanabhan that there are various legitimate demands of the Judges regarding which he was unable to pass orders because of limited scope of reference of the Committee headed by him. The association is now perusing this subject.
For Hon'ble Apex Court All India Judges Association is an organisation to which grievances of the Judges throughout India are ventilated. The Association survives on the patronage of its founders and its learned advocate who fight for the plight of Judges by appearing before Hon'ble Apex court as amicus queries and through the Executives from all the corners of the India who work relentlessly to carry forward the agitation to improve the service condition of Judges. The association also thrives for maintaining dignity, decorum and overall image of Judiciary. The association see to it that all members of the association maintain high standard of honesty, integrity and behaviour. The Judges come forward; connect themselves to the association, play their part and some day fade away. New faces come and occupy the void the association in this way All India Judges Association surges ahead and continues its work.