By B S Reporter
The Gujarat High Court judge Hemant M Prachchhak who refused to stay Congress MP and party's former president Rahul Gandhi's conviction in the criminal defamation case over his Modi surname remark has been recommended to be transferred to Patna High court by the Supreme Court Collegium.
Prachchhak is among 23 judges recommended to transfer for ‘better administration of justice' as cited in the transfer recommendation order of the collegium consisting of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Justice Sanjiv Khanna, Justice BR Gavai, and Justice Surya Kant.
In Rahul Gandhi's case, Justice Prachchhak, in a 123-page verdict in July, had rejected Rahul Gandhi's request, saying no case was made out to stay the conviction. Gandhi challenged the HC's verdict in Supreme Court, which stayed the conviction noting several considerations and deficiencies in the handling of the case by the trial court.
Who is Justice Prachchhak ?
According to media reports, Justice Prachchhak started his career as a lawyer in Gujarat High Court. He was appointed as assistant pleader of the Gujarat government when Narendra Modi was the chief minister of Gujarat. In 2015, when Modi had become prime minister, Prachchhak was appointed as Union government's standing counsel for the High Court of Gujarat. Later in 2021, he was made a judge at the Gujarat High Court.
Earlier, Justice Prachchhak was a part of the lawyers' team defending former BJP minister Maya Kodnani, an accused in the 2002 Gujarat riots case.
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