Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan expresses "deep grief" over death of 8 keralites in Nepal
Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 21: The Kerala Government on Tuesday said it would take all steps to ensure that the mortal remains of eight Keralite tourists,who died at a resort at Nepal, are brought to the state as early as possible.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan expressed "deep grief" over the incident, a release from the Chief Minister's Office said.
On the basis of the directions given by the Chief Minister, NORKA (Non Resident Keralite Affairs) officials have got in touch with the Indian Embassy in Nepal.
The bodies are expected to be brought to the state tomorrow after post-mortem, the statement added.
The eight tourists, including four minor children, died on Tuesday after they fell unconscious due to a possible gas leak in their room at a resort in Nepal, according to a media report in that nation.
The deceased - two couples and four children - were part of a group of 15 people travelling from Kerala to Pokhara, a popular mountainous tourist destination.
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Ordinance issued to increase number of Supreme Court judges from 34 to 38
New Delhi (PTI): The government has promulgated an ordinance to increase the strength of the Supreme Court from the present 34 judges to 38, including the Chief Justice of India.
The law ministry notified the ordinance on Saturday, which amended the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956, to increase the sanctioned strength of the top court.
So far, the sanctioned strength of the top court was 34, including the Chief Justice of India (CJI). Now, the number of judges has been increased by four, taking the sanctioned strength to 38.
The top court will now have 37 judges, other than the CJI.
With the apex court having two vacancies at present, and the ordinance coming into force immediately, the Supreme Court Collegium will now have to recommend six names for appointment as judges in the top court.
A bill will be brought in the Monsoon Session of Parliament to convert the ordinance – an executive order – into a law passed by Parliament.
The Union Cabinet had cleared a draft bill on May 5 to increase the number of apex court judges.
The strength of the Supreme Court was last increased from 30 to 33 (excluding the CJI) in 2019.
The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, as originally enacted in 1956, put the maximum number of judges (excluding the CJI) at 10.
This number was increased to 13 by the Supreme Court (Number of Judges), Amendment Act, 1960, and to 17 by another amendment to the law.
The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Act, 1986, augmented the strength of judges from 17 to 25, excluding the CJI.
A fresh amendment in 2009 further increased the strength from 25 to 30.
Article 124(3) of the Constitution lists the qualifications required to become a Supreme Court judge.
An Indian citizen who has either served as a high court judge for at least five years, or as an advocate for 10 years, or is a distinguished jurist, can be appointed to the top court.
The strength of the Supreme Court is increased based on the recommendations of the CJI, who writes to the Union law minister. After consulting the finance ministry, the Department of Justice under the law ministry moves the Cabinet with a draft bill.
