No proposal at present to reintroduce NJAC, Rajya Sabha told

The Act, which sought to overturn the Collegium system of appointing the Supreme Court and High Court judges, was struck down by the top court in 2015

There is no proposal at present to reintroduce a bill on National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC), Rajya Sabha was informed on Thursday.

Responding to a question by the Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge and CPI(M)‘s John Britas on whether the government proposes to reintroduce NJAC with “suitable modifications”, Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said in a written reply that “at present, there is no such proposal”.

The NJAC Act, which sought to overturn the Collegium system of appointing the Supreme Court and High Court judges, was struck down by the top court, in 2015.

The NJAC Bill and an accompanying Constitution amendment were passed by the Parliament, with near unanimity.

Mr. Rijiju had been attacking the Collegium system, describing it as being "alien" to the Constitution.

Vice-President and Rajya Sabha Chairperson Jagdeep Dhankhar, in his maiden speech in the Upper House on Wednesday, criticised the judiciary for scrapping the NJAC law, terming it as an instance of "severe compromise of parliamentary sovereignty", and said that the three organs should respect the "Laxman Rekha".