Recently, President Droupadi Murmu suggested that an All-India Judicial Service (AIJS) will help diversify the judiciary. In the same way that the Union Public Service Commission conducts a central recruitment exam and assigns successful candidates to cadres, the recruitment of judges of the district judiciary is being proposed to be made central, following which they will be assigned to the States. This idea has been discussed in the past and has also been a part of the Union government’s official policy for years. However, there has been no consensus on the proposal either from the High Courts or the State governments. 

Should an AIJS be created? Here we discuss the question. 

Guests:Alok Prasanna Kumar, co-founder and lead, Vidhi Karnataka; Bharat Chugh, a lawyer based in Delhi and a former civil judge

Host: Aaratrika Bhaumik