On April 18, 2026, Justice B. V. Nagarathna said that judges who can't live within their means and are driven by greed must be removed. She made this comment at the 22nd Biennial State Level Conference of Judicial Officers in Bengaluru.
The comment is about keeping the standards that judges are expected to have. A judge doesn't just hold a job; they have a lot of power over people's rights and freedom. For this power to work properly, judges must not be influenced by anything. This expectation isn't about decisions in court but also about how judges behave in their personal lives.
This is where the role of pay commissions becomes important.
The First National Judicial Pay Commission, set up in 1996 and chaired by former Supreme Court Justice K. Jagannatha Shetty, was the big effort to make pay for judges uniform across the country. It helped distinguish judges' pay from government employees' pay. Made service conditions the same across states. This created a stable and independent system for judges.
Building on that, the 2nd National Judicial Pay Commission, set up in 2017 and headed by Justice P. Venkatarama Reddi, introduced a new pay system. It also increased salaries and allowances, improved pensions, and added more welfare measures for judges.
These reforms were intended to ensure financial security and reduce potential vulnerabilities.
However, with these safeguards, judges are also expected to be accountable.
There have been cases in the past that show why this expectation matters. The Justice Soumitra Sen Impeachment Case raised concerns about wrongdoing at the High Court level. The Justice P. D. Dinakaran Controversy involved allegations that affected his elevation to the Supreme Court.
More recent instances have also drawn attention to concerns around transparency and accountability within the judiciary.
These cases, old and new, show that even small mistakes can lead to scrutiny and raise concerns about how the judicial system works.
This is why Justice Nagarathna's emphasis on removing judges who don't meet standards is necessary. It's aligned with the need to preserve trust in the process.
While pay commissions and reforms can strengthen the system, judges have a responsibility to uphold the expected standards of conduct.
The requirement is demanding. Judges' decisions and conduct must be fair and free from influence.
In that context, Justice Nagarathna’s comment reinforces a principle: the effectiveness of judicial institutions depends not only on structural safeguards but also on the standards maintained within them.
For citizens, this ultimately shapes the trust they place in courts as protectors of their rights and freedoms.
