DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS ANALYSIS
27th November 2021
. No. | Topic Name | Prelims/Mains |
1.   | Provision regarding appointment and removal of SC Judges | Prelims & Mains |
2.   | What is the provision of Poll Pleas | Prelims & Mains |
3.   | All About Vaccine Hesitancy | Prelims & Mains |
4.   | What are ‘Covishield’ and ‘Covaxin’ | Prelims & Mains |
5.   | Why there is a need for Judicial Reforms in India | Prelims & Mains |
6.   | About the Omicron Variant of COVID 19 | Prelims Specific |
1 – PROVISION REGARDING APPOINTMENT AND REMOVAL OF SC JUDGES:Â
GS II
Topic – Judiciary
- According to the Indian Constitution, the following are the procedures for appointing a Supreme Court Judge:
- After consultation with such Supreme Court and High Court Judges in the States as the President may think necessary for the purpose, each Supreme Court Judge shall be appointed by the President by warrant under his hand and seal and shall serve until he reaches the age of 65.
- The President’s consultation with the Chief Justice is not legally binding, according to the Supreme Court. On the other hand, the Court decided that consultation should be effective.
- In Supreme Court Advocates-on-Record Association versus Union of India 1993, the Supreme Court held that the Chief Justice’s decision is binding on the President, and that when advising the President, the CJI must consult two of the most senior judges.
- The Chief Justice of the United States has sole authority to commence the process of appointing Supreme Court justices. In the event of a disagreement between the CJI and the President, the CJI’s point of view will be taken into consideration.
- In July 1998, the President sought the court’s opinion on crucial issues relating to the nomination of Apex Court Judges and the transfer of High Court Judges.
- The 11th Presidential Reference sought answers to various queries about the Chief Justice of India’s consultation process, which was established in a 1993 case involving judge appointment and transfer opinions.
- The following is the essence of the situation:
- When making judicial appointments, the President must take the CJI’s advice into account.
- The ruling of the CJI binds the government. The judgement of the Chief Justice of the United States must be made after considerable consultation with a collegium of at least four senior Supreme Court justices.
- Even if two judges oppose it, he should not relay the recommendation to the government.
- Eligibility Criteria for Supreme Court Judges:
- To be appointed to the Supreme Court of India, a person must have the following conditions, according to Article 124 [3] of the Indian Constitution:
- He or she is an Indian citizen who has served for at least five years as a judge of a High Court or two or more such Courts in succession; or has served for at least ten years as an advocate of a High Court or two or more such Courts in succession; or is, in the opinion of the President, a distinguished jurist.
- The procedure for removing SC judges is as follows:
- The Indian Constitution also establishes a set of procedures for removing Supreme Court judges. As stated in Article 124(4), the Supreme Court judge’s removal regulations are as follows:
- A Supreme Court judge may not be removed from office unless the President issues an order after each House of Parliament has presented an address to the president in the same session, supported by a majority of the total membership of that House and a majority of not less than two-thirds of the members of that House present and voting, for such removal on the ground of proven mis behaviour or incapacity.
- Parliament may control the method for presenting an address, as well as the investigation and verification of a Judge’s misbehaviour or incapacity under the preceding Clause.
- Next Steps:
- According to Prof. Rumki Basu, the constitutional provisions controlling the judiciary’s independence make it abundantly clear that the judiciary is immune from executive and parliamentary influence, as indicated in the following:
- A judge’s minimal qualifications are established by the constitution.
- After being appointed, judges can serve for a total of 65 years. Unless there is evidence of misbehaviour or incapacity, they cannot be fired during their tenure.
- The procedure of removal is just too complicated. A majority of all members of both chambers of Parliament, as well as two-thirds of those present and voting, must support the resolution.
- The salaries of judges and the administrative expenses of the Supreme Court are deducted from the Consolidated Fund of India [CFI] and are not subject to Parliamentary approval.
- Supreme Court justices are not authorised to plead or act in any court or before any authority in India once they retire.
- Source –Â The Hindu –Â 27/11/21 – Page Number 10
2 – WHAT IS THE PROVISION OF POLL PLEAS:
GS II
Topic – Electoral reforms
- Electoral Petition/Poll Pleas Information:
- The Election Commission’s role ends with the announcement of the results; after that, a voter or candidate who suspects election fraud has just one legal recourse: filing an election petition.
- To protest the results, such a person might submit an election petition with the High Court of the state in which the constituency is located.
- The petition must be filed within 45 days following the poll results or it will be rejected by the courts.
- Despite the fact that the Representative of the People Act (RP Act) of 1951 requires the High Court to complete the trial in six months or less, it usually takes considerably longer, even years.
- The grounds for filing an election petition are specified in Section 100 of the RP Act:
- On election day, the winning candidate was ineligible to run for office.
- The victorious candidate, his poll agent, or anybody else with the winning candidate’s approval has engaged in a corrupt practise.
- Accepting or rejecting a nomination improperly based on the winner candidate’s nomination.
- Malpractice in the counting process, such as erroneous reception, refusal or rejection of any vote, or receiving a void vote.
- Noncompliance with the Constitution, the RP Act, and any RP Act-related laws or orders.
- If the petitioner wins (under Section 84 of the RP Act), the petitioner has the option of having the results of all or some of the winning candidates declared void.
- Furthermore, if the petition is filed by a candidate, she (or any other candidate) may ask the court to proclaim her (or any other candidate) the winner or properly elected.
- The court may order a new election or declare a new winner if the petitioner wins an election petition.
- In the past, election results have been declared null and void:
- The Allahabad High Court decision of 1975, for example, annulled Indira Gandhi’s four-year-old election from the Rae Bareli constituency due to alleged corruption.
- Provisions of the 1951 RP Act include the following:
- It governs the conduct of elections and by-elections.
- It provides the administrative infrastructure for elections to be held.
- It has to do with the registration of political parties.
- Bribery, coercion, and the appeal to vote or not vote on the basis of religion, race, community, or language are all types of corrupt practises outlined in Section 123 of the RP Act.
- It lays out the prerequisites for House membership as well as the disqualifications.
- It covers anti-corruption and anti-crime legislation.
- It explains how to deal with election-related concerns and controversies.
- Source –Â The Hindu –Â 27/11/21 –Â Page 6
3 – ALL ABOUT VACCINE HESITANCYÂ
GS II
Topic – Health related issues
- The following are some of the reasons why people should get vaccinated:
- Immunization’s main purpose is to protect patients from dangerous diseases.
- Immunization, when done on a large scale, also protects communities by establishing ‘herd immunity.’
- Vaccines against polio, smallpox, meningitis, and other diseases have been very successful all throughout the world.
- Why is it necessary to reduce vaccination-related apprehension:
- According to a Gallup poll conducted before to the immunisation roll-out in 2020, 18 percent of Indians said they would not take the vaccine.
- Since then, however, vaccine fear has grown in India, owing to mostly overblown claims of difficulties or even deaths.
- Vaccine apprehension has far-reaching consequences.
- If natural immunity does not emerge, disease outbreaks and pandemics will be the norm.
- The lower the vaccination rate, the greater the spread of disease and the greater the likelihood of mutations and new variants.
- Vaccine hesitancy can be triggered by a number of circumstances, including:
- One of the driving variables is a lack of understanding of the scope of benefits.
- Fears that are based on false information.
- Vaccines are difficult to come by.
- There is a lot of disinformation out there, especially on social media.
- Other factors include conceptions of civil freedoms, cost, cultural barriers, and numerous layers of confidence deficiency.
- A plan for the future:
- To relieve vaccine apprehensions, we must stick to the facts.
- We must first understand the basis of people’s fear, concern, and anti-vax sentiment before attempting to persuade them.
- By disputing untruths, we unwittingly encourage the notion that we are willfully denying the “real” truth.
- Today’s goal should be to reach out to as many people as possible with a statement that includes both direction and science.
- Using social media to distribute useful information, inventing alternate apps for people who don’t have easy access to immunizations, and enlisting the help of well-informed frontline workers would all be beneficial.
- Our capacity to achieve the Covid-19 herd immunity level is hampered by the possibility of a high number of persons refusing to be inoculated.
- As a result, the issue of vaccine phobia must be addressed right once.
- Source – The Hindu – 27/11/21 –Â Page Number 12
4 – WHAT ARE ‘COVISHIELD’ AND ‘COVAXIN’:
GS II
Topic – Health Related Issues
- COVISHIELD:
- In technical terms, it’s the brand name for an Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine candidate called AZD1222 or ChAdOx 1 nCoV19.
- It’s a modified version of a vaccine developed by the University of Oxford in collaboration with AstraZeneca, a Swedish-British pharmaceutical firm.
- The Serum Institute of India is the Indian producing partner (SII).
- Constituents and Action:
- It’s based on a weakened version of the common cold virus, or the adenovirus, which chimps have.
- This viral vector contains the genetic material of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein (protrusions) present on the virus’s outer surface that help it adhere to the human cell.
- The immune system is supposed to recognise this protein as a threat and seek to build antibodies against it.
- Since it elicited an immune response in people against the novel coronavirus in early studies, it is considered one of the global frontrunners for the Covid-19 vaccine.
- COVAXIN:
- The Covid-19 vaccination is the only one produced in India.
- Developed by Bharat Biotech in Hyderabad in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research’s National Institute of Virology in Pune.
- Constituents and Action:
- It’s an inactivated vaccination that’s made by killing (inactivating) the bacteria that causes the disease.
- This makes it impossible for the infection to proliferate while yet allowing the immune system to recognise it and produce an immune response.
- It’s very likely that it’ll go after anything other than the spike protein.
- It also aims to elicit an immune reaction to the nucleocapsid protein (the shell of the virus that encloses its genetic material).
- COVAXIN also contains immunogens (epitopes) from other genes in addition to those found in Spike protein, making it more likely to work against newer strains of the virus, such as the UK strain.
- Antigens are substances that attach to antibodies in a specific way, whereas immunogens are stimuli that elicit a humoral or cell-mediated immune response.
- Although both antigens and immunogens are antigens, not all antigens are immunogens.
- With COVAXIN’s clearance, India now has an additional vaccine protection, especially against mutant strains in a dynamic pandemic situation.
- Source –Â The Hindu – 27/11/21 –Â Page Number 12
5 – WHY IS THERE A NEED FOR JUDICIAL REFORMS:
GS II
Topic – Judiciary
- Source – The Hindu – 27/11/21 –Â Page 12
- About:
- The most significant tool for carrying out the promises of the Constitution is the legal system.
- The general people has a higher level of confidence and trust in the judiciary.
- Quick justice is required to uphold the rule of law and provide effective governance.
- As a result, judicial reform should be placed at the top of the development priority list.
- Current Issues:
- Administrating justice with a lag:
- The delay in ‘contract enforcement,’ which is primarily related to an incompetent judicial system, is blamed for India’s poor performance on ease of doing business.
- Subordinate courts have 2.54 crore cases waiting, according to the National Judicial Data Grid.
- In our complicated economy, the system is unable to keep up with the influx of new instances.
- With the exception of metropolises and state capitals, most subordinate courts lack basic amenities for judges, court personnel, and litigants.
- The court system is cumbersome and expensive, which disadvantages the poor.
- The judiciary’s overreach:
- Six of the country’s High Courts have been without regular Chief Justices for some months.
- The growth in crimes such as rape, murder, looting, and cheating is mostly due to judicial ineffectiveness.
- The Supreme Court dismissed the government’s request to create a National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) to expedite the appointment process.
- The standoff between the executive and the judiciary can only increase public unease.
- The legal system lacks sufficient funding.
- An increase in crimes against women and increasing reporting of criminal activities has been blamed for the increase in the judiciary’s workload.
- As a result, court changes at both the lower and higher levels are urgently needed to preserve democracy’s pillars strong and resilient.
- Recommendations:
- It is critical that justice is provided quickly and that higher courts are not overburdened.
- Increasing the accessibility and effectiveness of the legal system for the poor, as well as judicial accountability and transparency
- Time limits for decision-making should be created, similar to those in the Slovak Republic, where matters are addressed in fewer than 60 days.
- More judges should be hired, procedures should be expedited using information technology, and the judge-to-population ratio should be improved to reduce delays and costs.
- Automation powered by Artificial Intelligence is already helping doctors, and it can soon help courts and lawyers.
- The federal and state governments should work together to address the shortage of basic infrastructure, such as courtrooms and other important judge facilities.
- Establish a Performance Commission with the power to take corrective action.
- Many states in the US have commissions like this that review complaints about judges’ behaviour.
- Create specialised commercial fast track courts to expedite the enforcement process.
- The judiciary should be held accountable for properly documenting and presenting its own financial demands.
- A system for preventing frivolous lawsuits should be in place.
- It will be tremendously advantageous to have a well-thought-out litigation strategy.
- The structure of civil court fees needs to be adjusted, and state governments should be forced to spend all money collected on judicial infrastructure.
- To expedite the conclusion of ongoing cases, ad hoc or additional judges may be appointed.
- A transparent, full-time, unbiased judicial complaints committee should be established to investigate complaints against judges.
- Alternative Dispute Resolution options, such as Lok Adalats, should be examined on a broader scale to reduce the strain on the judiciary at all levels.
- The Law Commission’s Recommendations:
- The judiciary and the executive should both have a say in appointing judges.
- The position of Chief Justice should not be transferable.
- Judges must make judgements as soon as possible.
- These enhancements must be adopted as soon as feasible, because delayed justice compromises justice.
- Source –Â The Hindu –Â 27/11/21 –Â Page 12
6 – ABOUT THE OMICRON VARIANT OF COVID 19
Prelims Specific Topic
- Scientific specialists at the World Health Organization warned on Friday that a new coronavirus strain discovered in southern Africa was a “variant of concern,” the agency’s most serious categorization for such surveillance.
- The categorization, which occurred after an emergency meeting of the health body, is for dangerous variants that could spread quickly, cause major illness, or limit the effectiveness of vaccines or treatments.
- Delta, the most recent coronavirus to receive this designation, erupted this summer, accounting for nearly all Covid cases in the US.
- The new strain, named Omicron by the World Health Organization, has a number of genetic alterations that could allow it to spread quickly even among those who have been vaccinated, according to the WHO.
- Independent researchers agreed that Omicron necessitated rapid response, but that identifying the scale of the threat would necessitate additional investigation.
- While some expressions of concern, such as Delta, have lived up to expectations, others have had just a minor influence.
- Source –Â The Hindu –Â 27/11/21 –Â Page Number 1