AP High Court Enquiry Into Justice Eswaraiah's 'Phone Call Conspiracy' Unnecessary : Supreme Court

The Supreme Court on Monday granted relief to former Andhra Pradesh High Court judge, Justice V. Eswaraiah against an Order of the Andhra Pradesh High Court directing for a judicial inquiry into an alleged phone conversation between him and a District Judge plotting "conspiracy" against the High Court Chief Justice and a sitting Supreme Court Judge.The Supreme Court noted that the High Court ordered the enquiry against Eswaraiah was ordered while hearing an unconnected PIL related to following of COVID-19 protocols in the High Court. "We are of the view that the High Court ought not to have embarked on any other enquiry in the matter except to the maintainability of the PIL...", a bench comprising Justices Ashok Bhushan and R Subhash Reddy observed.The Supreme Court also observed that if the High Court feels that an enquiry was necessary, it can be ordered only after giving an opportunity of hearing to the former HC judge.Also, since Justice Eswariah has admitted before the Supreme Court the transcript of the alleged phone chat, the enquiry into the authenticity and genuineness of the phone conversation was not needed, the top court said.It was on February 22 that a Bench comprising Justices Ashok Bhushan and R Subhash Reddy reserved orders on the petition filed by Eswaraiah against the AP High Court order, which entrusted the enquiry with former Supreme Court Judge Justice R V Raveendran. During the hearing, Advocate Prashant Bhushan appearing for Justice Easwariah submitted that the High Court has passed the impugned order in a "strange" manner, while hearing an unconnected petition. He said, "Here what the HC has done is that...they were hearing a matter related to a death of a HC staff due to COVID due to non-following of protocols in HC. In that case, a suspended district judge files an impleading petition and produces the alleged conversation between him and Easwariah." Senior Advocates Harish Salve and Kapil Sibal had appeared for certain intervenors who were opposing Justice Easwariah's plea. Earlier, the Court had required Justice Eswaraiah to file an Affidavit regarding alleged private phone conversation with Mr. S. Ramakrishna, a suspended District Munsif Magistrate of Andhra Pradesh, into which an inquiry has been ordered by the High Court. The High Court had requested former Supreme Court judge Justice RV Raveendran to enquire into the matter. After it was alleged that the phone call disclosed a "serious conspiracy" against the High Court Chief Justice and a senior sitting Judge of the Supreme Court, the Andhra Pradesh High Court directed an investigation by a retired Supreme Court judge into it, against which order Justice Eswaraiah had moved the Top Court.The Apex Court had previously deferred pronouncement of the judgment in the matter after being apprised by Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal that an Application had been filed relating to the seizure of the phone of the District Judge Mr. S. Ramakrishna with whom Justice Eswaraiah was allegedly speaking. On 5th April, however, Apex Court dismissed an interlocutory application filed seeking to re-open arguments in the plea and stated that it would pronounce the judgement in the case on April 12. The IA had alleged that the mobile phone of the District Judge was lost. Click here to read/download the judgment

AP High Court Enquiry Into Justice Eswaraiah's 'Phone Call Conspiracy' Unnecessary : Supreme Court

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