Calcutta, Jan. 5: Chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee has raised questions about four lawyers shortlisted to be judges in Calcutta High Court at a time the state government and the judiciary are locked in a series of skirmishes.

Last week, Bhattacharjee sent a letter to the Union law ministry raising objections to the appointment of four lawyers as high court judges, an official in the chief minister’s secretariat confirmed today.

“The chief minister had reservations about four lawyers, Uttam Kumar Majumdar, Debdutta Sen, Anit Kumar Rakshit and Arijit Banerjee, and he expressed that in a letter to the law ministry,” said the official.

In his letter, the chief minister doubted Majumdar’s academic qualifications and Sen’s law degree. The reservations over Rakshit were based on conduct “unbecoming of that of a high court judge” while the letter mentioned Banerjee had “nothing worthwhile to show as a lawyer”.

But sources in the high court said that a section of the government, already facing flak from the judiciary on a number of issues, was trying to slow down the selection process. “The judiciary is giving a tough time to the government and that’s why the government is trying to slow down the process of appointment of judges,” said a Bar Council member.

“I cannot recollect a similar instance. The chief minister should not be concerned about appointment of judges…. Why he did it is best known to him,” said a senior lawyer.

According to legal experts, the union law ministry will now have to initiate an inquiry.

“A team is likely to come from Delhi to check the veracity of the issues the chief minister has mentioned in his letter. The ministry will take a decision only after conducting a probe,” said a high court source.

A panel of three senior-most high court judges, headed by Chief Justice S.S. Nijjar, had recommended the names of 13 lawyers to be appointed as judges. At present, 18 posts of judges are vacant in Calcutta High Court, which has a sanctioned strength of 58 judges.

The high court’s three-member panel also did not reach a consensus while recommending appointment of these four persons as judges, added the official in chief minister’s secretariat. “One of the judges in the panel raised some efficiency issues about the four shortlisted candidates,” he explained.

Before despatching the letter to Delhi, Bhattacharjee had discussed the matter with state law minister Rabilal Moitra and some legal luminaries in the state. “The chief minister had consulted governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi before sending his disapproval about the four names,” the official added.

According to norms, the first list is prepared with nominations from advocates from the Bar Association, barristers from the Bar Library Club and solicitors from incorporate law society. Then, the Judges Appointment Committee prepares a shortlist and sends them for approval to the state government, which in turn forwards the list to the governor, who sends the list to the Supreme Court for further shortlisting.

The law ministry finally gives its seal of approval to the names. Once the Chief Justice of India sends the list, the ministry has to appoint the candidates. At the most, the ministry can return the names once. But if the Chief Justice puts his foot down, the law ministry has to sign on the dotted line.