Sukhbir seeks PM Modi's intervention in appointment of Sikhs as judge

Chandigarh: Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Badal on Thursday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking "his immediate and urgent intervention against the omission of two Sikh lawyers Harmit Singh Grewal and Deepinder Singh in their appointment as judges in the Punjab and Haryana High Court despite recommendations by the Supreme Court collegium".

Badal urged the Prime Minister to get the injustice and communal discrimination against Sikhs stopped by personally intervening in the matter.

In his letter, Badal described the issue as one of "great sensitivity".

He said: "Singling out Sikh lawyers for non-appointment would clearly lead to an impression that the omission is on communal considerations. This impression is vindicated and strengthened by the observations of the Supreme Court itself asking the government why only the Sikh lawyers have been left out and why a policy of pick and choose is being followed."

Badal recalled that the Supreme Court collegium on October 17 forwarded to the government the names of five lawyers for appointment as judges in the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

While the names of the three of the five judges have been cleared by the government, both Sikh lawyers were denied their due appointment despite the collegium's recommendations. Badal said this was not the first time that such an omission had been made.

"In March 2022 also the apex court collegium had recommended 12 names for appointment as High Court judges. First of all, only one of the 12 was a Sikh which by itself seemed so strange and unfair. On top of it, even the sole Sikh name recommended by the Supreme Court was withheld while all other 11 were duly cleared," he wrote.