Katju should quit as Press Council Chairman: Jaitley
New Delhi: Reacting sharply on his comments on Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, BJP leader Arun Jaitley on Sunday asked Press Council Chairman Markandey Katju to quit, saying a person holding the post must be impartial.
In an article on the BJP website, Jaitley said Katju’s attacks “seem more in the nature of thanks-giving to those who provided him with a post retirement job”.
The Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha said Katju had over the past week released a draft report on behalf of the Press Council of India (PCI) alleging that the media in Bihar was not independent.
“Though initially known for his scholarship, Justice Katju was never a conventional judge. His utterances, both during his tenure as a judge and thereafter, are clearly outlandish,” Jaitley said. “Dignified comment is alien to him,” he added.
He said a judge should refrain from involvement in political controversies. If he desires to get into political activity or a political debate, he should cease to hold his judicial or quasi-judicial office.
