Trump nominates Brett Kavanaugh to US Supreme Court
Washington, July 10 : US President Donald Trump has picked Brett Kavanaugh, a federal appeals court judge with extensive legal credentials and a lengthy political record, to succeed Justice Anthony M. Kennedy in the Supreme Court.
"Judge Kavanaugh has impeccable credentials," Trump said on Monday, shortly after announcing his pick, CNBC reported.
In a primetime announcement at the White House, the President praised his pick as a "brilliant jurist", BBC reported.
The nominee, a District of Columbia appeals court judge, is a former adviser to ex-President George W. Bush. The decision has far-reaching implications for America on everything from abortion to guns to immigration.
Trump said: "Judge Kavanaugh has impeccable credentials, unsurpassed qualifications and a proven commitment to equal justice under the law."
He added: "He is a brilliant jurist with a clear and effective writing style, universally regarded as one of the finest and sharpest legal minds of our time."
This is the president's second appointment to the highest court in the land, potentially allowing him to shape the US for a generation after he leaves the White House.
With reality television-style suspense, he had kept everyone guessing up until the last moment. The appointee would replace Justice Anthony Kennedy, 81, who announced last month that he will retire this summer.
At Monday night's announcement, Judge Kavanaugh said: "Mr. President, thank you. Throughout this process I have witnessed firsthand your appreciation for the vital role of the American judiciary.
"No president has ever consulted more widely, or talked with more people from more backgrounds to seek input abut a Supreme Court nomination.
"I am grateful to you and I am humbled by your confidence in me."
Judge Kavanaugh has served since 2006 on the influential US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and was formerly a White House aide under George W. Bush.
He previously worked for Kenneth Starr, the independent counsel who investigated Democratic former President Bill Clinton in the 1990s.
A Yale graduate, he once clerked for Justice Kennedy, the man he would replace. Judge Kavanaugh recently voiced disagreement with a court decision allowing an undocumented teenage immigrant to get an abortion.
He wrote a Minnesota law review article in 2009 arguing that presidents should be shielded from criminal investigations and civil lawsuits while in office.
Analysts say that could have weighed in his favour with the White House, given that the Supreme Court may at some point be asked to rule on matters arising from Special Counsel Robert Mueller's ongoing Russia-related investigation.
The nominee must be confirmed by the US Senate, which the Republican president's party narrowly controls 51-49. A nominee needs a simple majority of 51 votes to be confirmed.
With Senator John McCain battling cancer in his home state of Arizona, Republicans can currently only muster 50 votes. Before a full vote on the chamber floor, the prospective justice will be grilled by the Senate Judiciary Committee in hearings that can go on for days.
Judge Kavanaugh said he would begin meetings with senators on Tuesday. Democrats are certain to press Trump's latest nominee on the landmark 1973 Roe vs Wade ruling that legalised abortion nationwide.
Conservative Christians have long vied to overturn that decision, and Trump has previously said he wants "pro-life" justices opposed to abortion rights.
The White House and Republican party want the nomination in the bag before November's mid-term elections.
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Waqf row: JPC Chairman in Karnataka on "fact finding", to meet aggrieved persons
Hubballi (Karnataka) (PTI): The Chairman of the Joint Committee of Parliament on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, Jagdambika Pal on Thursday said he is in Karnataka for "fact finding" and to meet those aggrieved, following allegations by a section of farmers and others in certain parts of the state that their lands were marked as Waqf properties.
He will visit Hubballi, Vijayapura and Belagavi as part of his visit, during which he will meet farmers and members of various organisations regarding their lands being claimed by the State Waqf Board.
He will be accompanied by Bengaluru South MP and JPC member Tejasvi Surya during the visit, Surya's office said.
"As the Chairman of the Joint Parliamentary Committee I have come to meet aggrieved farmers, whose land now the Waqf board is claiming. The land belonged to farmers for 50-70 years, (which) all of a sudden Waqf board is claiming. They (farmers) are agitating," Pal said.
Speaking to reporters here, he said farmers' organisations have met him at the airport and have handed over some papers to him.
"I have also inquired whether the land that is claimed by the Waqf board -- do you (farmers) have some bonafide title or ownership or deeds? -- they are saying that there are bonafide owners of the land, even then the Waqf board is claiming," he said.
Pal said Surya had told him about the "grave situation" and requested him to come to Hubballi, Vijayapura, as the Waqf board has even claimed some historical monuments protected by the Archeological survey of India.
"...this is the issue, the committee has been constituted by the Honorable Speaker (of Lok Sabha) to inquire and to prepare the report. We have come here for fact finding, we will meet different farmers' organisations. Lawyers of the district have also come and given papers, also farmers, I have received some papers. I'm here to meet those who are aggrieved," he said.
Surya had recently written to Pal, drawing attention to the plight of farmers from Vijayapura District and other areas in the vicinity in Karnataka, who have been served notices claiming their land as Waqf property.
Apart from the notices, changes have been made in the RTC (Record of Rights, Tenancy and Crops), pahani and mutation registers for some of the land parcels without following the due process of law, he had said.
There were allegations by a section of farmers from Vijayapura district that their lands were marked as Waqf properties, and similar charges have surfaced from few other places subsequently. Similar allegations have also been made by some organisations and religious institutions like Maths.
With the row escalating, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah directed officials that all notices issued to farmers be immediately revoked, and any unauthorised amendments in land records without due notice must also be nullified.
The opposition BJP has been holding protests, accusing the Congress government of indulging in "land jihad". The party has also demanded the sacking of Waqf Minister Zameer Ahmed Khan from the Cabinet.
