In a major setback for Sikkim High Court Chief Justice P.D. Dinakaran, the Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that the impeachment proceedings against him would continue. However, the court asked the chairman of the Judges Inquiry Committee (JIC) to replace senior counsel P.P. Rao after Dinakaran alleged that Rao was biased against him.An apex court bench of Justices G.S. Singhvi and C.K. Prasad termed as “motivated” Dinakaran’s plea for quashing the charges framed against him by the JIC.
At the same time, the bench directed that Rao be dropped and said that the JIC would proceed with its inquiry on the basis of the charges already framed by it.Dinakaran had contended that the JIC, constituted last January by Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari, had exceeded its brief.
The JIC, headed by Supreme Court judge Aftab Alam and which includes Karnataka High Court Chief Justice J.S. Khehar, is inquiring into charges of corruption, land grabbing, possessing disproportionate assets and misbehaviour against Dinakaran.
