Asset Declaration Norms for Judges

INSIGHTS IAS: New Delhi: Sunday, March 30, 2025.
Context: Discovery of unaccounted cash at Delhi High Court judge Yashwant Varma’s residence has renewed debate on mandatory disclosure of judges’ assets.

About Asset Declaration Norms for Judges:

• Restatement of Values of Judicial Life (1997)
• Judges must declare all movable and immovable assets (in their name, spouse’s or dependents’) to the Chief Justice.
• It does not mandate public disclosure.
• Supreme Court Resolution (2009)
• Judges’ asset disclosures were made voluntarily available on the Supreme Court’s website.
• No statutory compulsion; updates have ceased since 2018.
• RTI Act Interpretation (2019)
• Supreme Court ruled that judges’ asset details do not constitute personal information, bringing them within the RTI ambit.
• Judicial Standards and Accountability Bill, 2010
• Proposed mandatory public declaration of assets by judges.
• Bill lapsed with the dissolution of the 15th Lok Sabha; never reintroduced.
• Parliamentary Committee Recommendation (2023)
• Urged the introduction of legislation to ensure mandatory disclosures by SC and HC judges.
• Awaiting legislative action.

About Asset Declaration by Public Officials:

• RTI Act, 2005
• Promotes transparency; citizens can access details of public servants’ assets via RTI applications.
• All India Services (Conduct) Rules, 1968
• Rule 16(1): Mandatory annual declaration of assets and liabilities to the cadre-controlling authority.
• Political Candidates & MPs/MLAs
• Based on SC ruling (2002), mandatory disclosure at the time of nomination.
• Submitted to Speaker (Lok Sabha) or Chairperson (Rajya Sabha); publicly accessible.
• Union Ministers & Bureaucrats
• Declare assets to PMO or respective state departments.
• Information is often published online (e.g., PMO website, IAS officers list).