Notify draft rules relating to appointment of law officers: Madras HC

Chennai: The Madras high court has said it will be open to the state government notifying draft rules relating to appointment of law officers to represent the state in courts, prepared by the amicus curie appointed by the court, unless it has some concern, which can be brought to the notice of the court.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice M. Sundar passed further interim orders on batch petitions, which sought a direction to the state government to devise a policy in order to ensure that the appointments of law officers were done in consultation with the judiciary.

Earlier, the bench had on January 2 said, “The advocate general states that the rules are still in process, we find that the process has been going on for quite some months and at the request of Advocate General, we grant last opportunity to file the draft rules and hand over the copies to amicus curie (Senior advocates R.Krishnamoorthy and A.L.Somayaji) within 10 days, failing which, the amicus can proceed to suggest the rules themselves ignoring contribution which the state government wanted to give, but have not given till date”.

In its latest order, the bench said senior counsel assisting this court as Amicus has prepared a draft of the Tamil Nadu Law Officers in Different Courts in the State (Appointment) Rules, which takes into consideration the draft prepared by the government and certain other suggestions.

It will be open to the state government now to proceed and notify these draft rules, unless they have some concern, which can be brought to the notice of this court on the next date. “The records produced before us only have resignations and bio-data. There are, thus, no noting where any decision was taken to call for the bio-datas and in what manner processed,” the bench added and posted to March 16, further hearing of the case.