Courting Controversy: How India’s Collegium is Fueling Corruption and Nepotism, and Why it Must Go
Som Misha · 11/06/2025 - India’s judicial collegium system, created through the “Three Judges Cases,” has become opaque and self-serving, fostering nepotism, favoritism, and corruption while excluding transparency or public oversight.
- Nearly 38% of Supreme Court judges have family ties within the judiciary or politics, turning judicial appointments into a hereditary network often dubbed the “Uncle Judge Syndrome.”
- Corruption scandals, including the 2025 Justice Yashwant Varma case, reveal how secrecy and lack of accountability have allowed unethical behavior, bribery, and quid-pro-quo appointments to flourish.
- Collegium’s dominance has eroded public trust, slowed justice delivery, and weakened democratic faith, as citizens increasingly view courts as elitist and biased.
- Reinstating a reformed National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) could balance independence with transparency, bringing merit, diversity, and accountability back to India’s judicial system
Som Misha
Som Misha is an investment banker. After hours, he sometimes wears his writer's hat and writes on current affairs topics. He has a passion for crafting compelling narratives that impact people's lives.
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