bhubaneswar l friday l october 30, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l jeypore EDITION cji: Opposition from bar halted hiring retired judges for hcs CJI Surya Kant on Thursday said efforts to battle pendency of cases by appointing former judges to high courts were blocked by Bar associations ‘no cji can risk annoying the bar’ supreme court’s january 2025 exception ”Chief Justice Bobde, Justice Kaul and my bench, we virtually revived the practice of appointing ad hoc judges from among retired judges. We thought we would bring this practice into vogue. But opposition from Bar associations prevented the initiative from taking off... they started passing resolutions... no Chief Justice can risk annoying the Bar,” the CJI said ■ ■ Considering a huge backlog of criminal cases, the Supreme Court on January 30 last year had allowed high courts to appoint ad hoc judges, not exceeding 10 per cent of the court’s total strength Article 224A establishes a constitutional mechanism that allows retired high court judges to be temporarily reappointed as HC judges 18 lakh criminal cases are stuck in litigation in high courts CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA ■ BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOgGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI Major crackdown Participants at the luncheon reception hosted by MEA Secy (West) Sibi George | MEA Pak envoy joins SCO’s luncheon before Nov meet lisational Dialogue Forum in New Delhi from November 20 Pakistan’s Chargé d’Affaires to 22, with Prime Minister to India, Saad Ahmad Warra- Narendra Modi expected to inich, attended a luncheon recep- augurate the event. tion hosted by the Secretary Pakistan has yet to confirm (West) in the External Affairs its representation at the forum. Ministry, Sibi George, for resi- Pakistan’s Minister for National dent envoys of Shanghai Coop- Heritage and Culture, Aueration Organisation (SCO) rungzeb Khan Khichi, is among member states and those invited. If Khichi partner countries, as Purana Qila attends, it would mark India prepares to host the first visit by a Pakivenue the grouping’s first stani minister since The forum is Civilisational Dialogue then foreign minister expected to Forum next month. Bilawal Bhutto Zardari bring together MEA spokesperson attended the SCO forRandhir Jaiswal said representatives eign ministers’ meeting discussions focused on from more than in Goa in May 2023. strengthening cooper- 25 countries at The luncheon comes ation within the SCO Purana Qila, the amid continued diplo16th-century framework, particumatic strains between fort in Delhi larly cultural and civiNew Delhi and Islamalisational exchanges, bad. However, both and preparations for the up- countries remain engaged coming forum scheduled for through multilateral platforms November 20. such as the SCO. “The interaction underIn September last, India sent scored India’s commitment to its SCO National Coordinator, strengthening longstanding Alok Dimri, to Islamabad for a civilisational connections and meeting ahead of Pakistan’s people-to-people ties with the presidency of the grouping and SCO region,” Jaiswal said. its planned SCO leaders’ sumIndia will host the SCO Civi- mit in August 2027. Jayan t h Ja c o b @ New Delhi Bid to alter system via violence? Can’t get job in u.p. nam i ta b a j pa i @ Lucknow THE Uttar Pradesh government has tightened character verification norms for candidates selected through direct recruitment, stating that individuals associated with organisations seeking to alter the existing social or political system through violence would henceforth not be eligible for government jobs in the state. The order, issued by the appointments department, will apply to recruitments across departments, cor porations, councils and local bodies. This comes amid a political row over recent calls for “regime change” during antiCEC protests. The state gover nment, DM to hear however, clarified that politi- appeals cal ideology alone cannot be The order said grounds for denying employ- candidates ment. It said the mere regis- would be given a tration of an FIR or a pend- chance to ing investigation would not present their automatically disqualify a case even if the candidate. Authorities have police submits been asked to assess the cir- an adverse cumstances of each case report against rather than rely solely on them. The DM criminal complaints or ongo- will hear the ing probes. candidate before The revised guidelines forwarding the seek to distinguish between report political beliefs and involvement in violent activities, signalling a tougher approach towards applicants linked to organisations advocating violence. The move comes amid the backdrop of a growing confrontation between the BJP-led state government and the Opposition over electoral issues, adding a political dimension to what the government describes as an administrative exercise in vetting prospective employees. Prohibitory orders to With ex-Speaker at helm, be imposed in Kotia INDIA bloc to ‘impeach’ villages for AP polls Gyanesh Kumar today E x p r e s s N e w s S e r v i c e @ Koraput The Koraput administration on Thursday decided to impose prohibitory orders across all villages under Kotia gram panchayat in view of Andhra Pradesh’s proposed panchayat samiti and zilla parishad elections in the border region. The decision was taken at an emergency allparty meeting convened by the district administration to discuss measures to counter AP’s electoral activities in Kotia and accelerate development in the bordering villages. Koraput collector Manoj Satyawan Mahajan warned that violations of the prohibitory orders under section 163 of the BNSS would invite stringent legal action, including arrest. All necessary measures would be taken to maintain law and order in the Kotia villages. He also said the district administration was committed to ensuring effective implementation of government schemes and accelerating development work in the region. Jeypore MLA Tara Prasad Bahinipati criticised the residents who live in Odisha but vote in favour of Andhra Pradesh. “Those who wish to support the neighbouring state should consider moving there,” he said. Koraput MLA Raghuram Machha, Pottangi legislator Ramachandra Kadam and Kotpad MLA Rupu Bhatra said political parties have united to protect Odisha’s ter ritorial integrity . They asserted that Andhra Pradesh should not be allowed to conduct elections in Kotia and called for closure of all border entry points to prevent such activities. Congress’ Jairam Ramesh, KC Venugopal, Meira Kumar, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, TMC’s Derek O’Brien, JMM’s Mahua Maji at the meet P r e e t h a N a i r @New Delhi THE INDIA bloc will hold a three-hour “public impeachment” of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar at Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s official residence on Friday, with former Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar presiding over the proceedings. Kharge, Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, will move the motion to impeach Kumar, while LoP in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, will conclude the discussion before the ‘motion’ is passed by voting, sources said. The contours of the proceedings were finalised at a meet of INDIA bloc leaders at Kharge’s residence here on Thursday . At least 30 speakers, including representatives of 21 political parties, are expected to participate in Friday’s proceedings. Sources said an invitation has been extended to the BJD, but the party is yet to confirm its participation. Civil society representatives and persons affected by the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls will share their accounts. The symbolic impeachment comes ahead of the Opposition’s November 1 rally here against alleged “vote theft” and the SIR. CPM MP John Brittas told TNIE the bloc decided on a “public impeachment” rather than a mock exercise, as it would give expression to people’s concerns over the poll process. “If the Prime Minister is keen to attend our programme, he is most welcome,” he added. Brittas said the programme would follow a structured discussion, with Meira Kumar as the presiding officer. Asked who would occupy the ‘treasury’ benches, Brittas said none wanted to as it could be interpreted as support for the CEC. TMC’s Derek O’Brien and SP’s Harendra Malik were among the leaders at Thursday’s meet. Arnab floods over 1K villages in 2 dists; CM’s aerial survey today A s i s h M e h ta @ Bhubaneswar More than 1,000 villages in Ganjam and Gajapati districts bore the brunt of cyclone Arnab which induced pelting rains and triggered flashfloods in two major rivers of south Odisha on Thursday . About 2,000 people were stranded in Ganjam as multiple teams continued efforts to rescue them. In one instance, an Indian Coast Guard helicopter was deployed to evacuate people stranded in the district. According to government data, about 299 villages in 22 blocks of Ganjam and 711 villages in seven blocks of Gajapati district were affected by the deluge. Apart from the two districts, heavy rains affected Malkangiri, Koraput, Nabarangpur, Rayagada, Kalahandi, Nuapada and A partially submerged house at Haladiapadar on Berhampur outskirts | Express Kandhamal too. Over 59,000 people were evacuated to safety in the last 72 hours. Home minister Amit Shah spoke to Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and assured all assistance and support. “In the wake of Cyclone Arnab, spoke with the Chief Ministers of Odisha, Chhattisgarh, And- hra Pradesh and Puducherry and assured them of every assistance to mitigate the hardships of the people in the face of the disaster. NDRF and SDRF teams have sprung into action and are continuing with rescue and relief operations on a war footing,” said Shah in a post on X. The inter-ministerial central teams will soon be sent to assess the impact and further assistance, he added. CM Majhi also took to X and said he briefed Shah about the prevailing situation in the affected districts and restoration measures undertaken by the state government. Rescue teams are engaged in restoring communication systems and clearing road blockages and efforts are on to ensure public safety and secure transportaCONTINUED ON P5 tion, he added.