Feel like baby again, says junior-most SC Judge K.M. Joseph
New Delhi, Aug 14 : Newly appointed Supreme Court Judge K.M. Joseph on Tuesday said that he "feels like a baby again" since he is the junior-most Judge of the apex court.
"At the age of 60 plus, I feel like a baby again," Justice Joseph said at a felicitation function organised for new apex court Judges by the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA), which was his first public appearance after taking oath as the 25th Judge of the Supreme Court.
He said: "I am far too conscious of my own limitations to be elevated to the highest court. It is indeed a great honour. It will be presumptuous on my part to even venture to make any promise. All that I can do is -- I hope and pray -- I will be true to the oath which I have taken and which will go a long way in dispensing justice."
The SCBA felicitated four new Judges -- Justices Indu Malhotra, Indira Banerjee, Vineet Saran and Justice Joseph.
The elevation of Justice Joseph -- who was Chief Justice of the Uttarakhand High Court -- to the apex court was mired in controversy. The Supreme Court collegium had recommended his name for elevation on January 10 but the Centre sent it back for reconsideration.
The collegium recommendation was reiterated on July 17.
When President Kovind cleared the name of Justice Banerjee, Justice Saran and Justice Joseph for elevation, Justice Joseph's name was third in seniority.
Senior Judges met Chief Justice Dipak Misra to convey their dissatisfaction over the government's decision to place Justice Joseph in the third place for the swearing-in.
They maintained that he should be senior among the three as his name was first to be recommended and was re-recommended after the government raised objections.
Government sources, however, had maintained that the seniority of Judges is on an all-India basis and not based on the Supreme Court collegium's recommendation.
In 2016, Justice Joseph had quashed President's rule in Uttarakhand when he was the High Court Chief Justice.
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Bill to set up single higher education regulator likely to be tabled in Parliament next week
New Delhi (PTI): A Bill which seeks to set up a single regulator for institutions of higher education is required to facilitate universities and other higher educational institutes become independent and self-governing, officials said.
The Bill is likely to be introduced in Parliament next week after it got the Union Cabinet's nod on Friday.
The proposed legislation, which was earlier christened the Higher Education Commission of India (HECI) Bill, has now been named Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhikshan Bill.
A single higher education regulator, which was proposed in the new National Education Policy (NEP), looks to replace the University Grants Commission (UGC), the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE).
"The Bill proposes to set up a Higher Education Commission of India to facilitate universities and other higher educational institutes become independent and self-governing institutions and to promote excellence through a robust and transparent system of accreditation and autonomy. It is likely to be introduced (in Parliament) in the coming week," an official said.
While the UGC presently oversees non-technical higher education in the country, the AICTE oversees technical education, while the NCTE is the regulatory body for teachers' education.
The Commission is proposed to be set up as a single higher education regulator, but medical and law colleges will not be brought under its ambit.
It is proposed to have three major roles -- regulation, accreditation and setting professional standards, officials said.
Funding, which is seen as the fourth vertical, is not proposed to be under the regulator so far. The autonomy for funding is proposed to be with the administrative ministry, they said.
