senior judges, should take precedence.

In keeping with the spirit of Article 50 1of the

Constitution, this decision limits the executive's power in judicial appointments. The
court ruled that the executive branch should only act as a check and balance on the
judiciary's authority, with the Chief Justice of India's opinion taking precedence. This
decision corrects earlier errors in the appointment process by reducing executive influence
and eliminating political influence, bias, and favouritism. By interpreting "Consultation" in
terms of "Concurrence," the court also broadened the definition of "Consultation."2

According to Ahmadi & Punchhi JJ, the minority opinion, the majority's opinion was that if
the CJI was to be given priority in the appointment process, then other constitutional
functionaries would be effectively marginalized because of this upper hand. This erosion of
power will irreparably harm the separation of powers, a fundamental principle of the
Constitution. According to them, this would lead to excessive influence from the judiciary, as
well as bias, conflict, and ultimately pandemonium in the panel. 3 Also, the majority provided
guidelines for the higher judiciary to follow when selecting judges going forward. For
appointments to the apex court, the majority panel stipulated that the CJI must submit the
proposal, and for appointments to the High Court, the CJ of the relevant High Court must
submit the proposal. Transfers should follow the same procedure, but the CJ of the HC must
be transferred after CJI. According to the court, an appointment should only be made in
accordance with the opinion of the Chief Justice. The senior most member of the
Supreme Court must select the next Chief Justice.

1
INDIA CONST. art. 50.
2
Ravindher, P. (2020) Supreme Court advocates on Record Association v. Union of India, Indian Law
Portal. Available at: https://indianlawportal.co.in/supreme-court-advocates-on-record-association-v-
union-of-india/ (Accessed: March 14, 2023).
3
Balaji, A. (2019) Supreme Court advocates on Record Association vs Union of India, Law Times
Journal. Available at: https://lawtimesjournal.in/supreme-court-advocates-on-record-association-vs-
union-of-india/ (Accessed: March 14, 2023).