In India, No Supreme Court or High Court Judge Has Ever Been Successfully Removed Through the Impeachment Process
A Constitutional Power That Has Never Been Fully Executed
Since the adoption of the Constitution in 1950, India has never successfully removed a sitting judge of the Supreme Court or any High Court through the constitutional impeachment process. While several judges have faced allegations, parliamentary motions, or formal inquiries, none has ultimately been removed after completing the constitutionally mandated procedure.
How Can a Judge Be Removed?
Under Articles 124(4) and 124(5) of the Constitution (applicable to Supreme Court judges) and Article 218 (extending the same procedure to High Court judges), a judge may be removed only on the grounds of proved misbehaviour or incapacity. The process requires:
- A motion initiated by Members of Parliament.
- An investigation under the applicable legal framework.
- Approval by both Houses of Parliament with a special majority—a majority of the total membership of each House and a two-thirds majority of members present and voting.
- A removal order by the President of India after Parliament passes the address.
Because of these stringent constitutional safeguards, judicial removal is intentionally one of the most difficult procedures in Indian public law.
Major Attempts That Failed
Justice V. Ramaswami (1993)
The first major impeachment proceedings against a Supreme Court judge involved V. Ramaswami, who faced allegations of financial irregularities. Although an inquiry committee found substance in several charges, the removal motion failed in the Lok Sabha because many members abstained, preventing the required special majority. Consequently, he was not removed.
Justice Soumitra Sen (2011)
Former Soumitra Sen became the first judge against whom the Rajya Sabha passed a removal motion. However, before the Lok Sabha could complete the constitutional process, he resigned from office. As a result, the impeachment process ended without his removal.
Other Proceedings
Other judges have also faced proposed or initiated removal proceedings, but these matters have typically concluded through resignation, retirement, or failure to complete the parliamentary process.
Why Has No Judge Been Successfully Removed?
Legal scholars point to several reasons:
- The Constitution deliberately sets an exceptionally high voting threshold to protect judicial independence.
- The process depends on broad political consensus across both Houses of Parliament.
- In some cases, judges have resigned before the process concluded, making removal proceedings effectively infructuous.
- Parliamentary dynamics and changing political alignments can prevent the required special majority from being achieved.
Recent Context
In recent years, proceedings have again been discussed in relation to allegations against certain judges. However, as matters have unfolded, resignation or pending proceedings have meant that India still has no instance of a Supreme Court or High Court judge being successfully removed through the constitutional impeachment process. For example, reports noted that the resignation of Yashwant Varma in 2026 meant he did not become the first judge removed by Parliament.
The fact that no Supreme Court or High Court judge has ever been successfully removed through impeachment in India reflects the Constitution’s strong protection of judicial independence. At the same time, repeated unsuccessful or incomplete proceedings have fueled continuing debates over whether the current mechanism strikes the right balance between judicial accountability and judicial independence.
