1ST March 2021
To,
The Honourable Chief Justice of India and Companion Judges
Supreme Court of India
New Delhi
PLEA NOT TO CONSIDER ATMARAM NADKARNI FOR APPOINTMENT AS SUPREME COURT JUDGE
Your Lordships,
1. By this letter may in public interest I most humbly once again seek your
kind intervention to ensure that for the below mentioned compelling reasons
the name of the very awfully tainted Atmaram Nadkarni not be considered for
the coveted post of Supreme Court Judge.
2. More importantly as an officer of the Court, I would have abdicated in
my bounden duty if I had not raised this crucial issue by writing this
letter.
3. It is with deep anguish and utter dismay that we have learnt once again
of now renewed secret back door machinations by the former Additional
Solicitor General of India Atmaram Nadkarni to try and get himself
sneakingly elevated as a Judge of the Supreme Court of India. It would be
the darkest day in the history of our Indian Judiciary if this were to ever
be a reality.
4. The cronies of Atmaram Nadkarni have been expressing confidence that
their Messiah would be elevated to the Supreme Court by April this year.
5. Atmaram Nadkarni by his blatant acts of omission and commission brought
utter and sheer disgrace to the high Constitutional post of Advocate
General of Goa and later as Additional Solicitor General.
6. He was sacked by the Goa Government from appearing in the Mhadei Water
dispute and other cases after having allegedly looted the State in crores
by his excessive billing.
7. The Z-security that was illegally given to Atmaram Nadkarni as
Additional Solicitor General was rightly withdrawn by the Goa Government.
It should be noted here that the Government of India never gave him such
security cover and Atmaram Nadkarni was no longer the Advocate General of
Goa. Yet, he had managed to hoodwink the Government of Goa and browbeat it
to bending to give him this Z-security.
8. Atmaram Nadkarni over two years highhandedly enjoyed an unprecedented
security cover of around 22 police personnel around the clock which
included an escort vehicle, while the Solicitor General of India and other
Additional Solicitor Generals are assigned only one Personal Security
Officer (PSO).
9. Professional ethics demands that a person occupying the high and solemn
constitutional posts should never appear for a private party in a case
where the government is directly or even indirectly a party but this
cardinal principle was brazenly flouted by Atmaram Nadkarni in his never
ending penchant for raking in the moolah even by any unholy means.
10. Persons appointed to any Constitutional position should also never be
one who has a lust and greed for wealth or having vested interest with any
lobby but has to always ensure the State’s and Nation’s best interests at
heart. They should act as a role model while upholding impeccable integrity
and the highest ethical standards. Being important Constitutional
functionaries their conduct at all times must be absolutely beyond any
shadow of doubt. But the flamboyant Atmaram Nadkarni is known to be a man
without any principles and someone who would dip even into the gutter if
the stakes are high.
11. As Advocate General of Goa and later as Additional Solicitor General of
India Atmaram Nadkarni maintained close links with the Mining, Casino and
Builder’s lobby while in violation of ethics and in conflict of interest
had been appearing directly and indirectly in cases against the Government.
If he was unable to appear due to apparent exposure, he would set up his
associates functioning from his own office.
12. There needs to be a thorough probe into the mind boggling wealth and
dubious assets acquired by Atmaram Nadkarni over the last few years. A
report from the Intelligence Bureau if sought would reveal his very
doubtful antecedents and conduct. It would also be worthwhile to conduct an
inquiry as to the persons with whom he had been interacting either in Goa
or in Delhi including his client the fugitive Vijay Mallya. This would only
prove that these unwanted characters would be a major embarrassment for the
Judiciary. Despite representing the State of Goa, he chose to appear for
the establishments of Vijay Mallya, to protect Mallya's interests, with his
office juniors even appearing on other sides, all part of the big well
stitched game.
13. In Goa we have been witness to Atmaram Nadkarni’s skills of wining and
dining Judges. It has been painful to see some very good Judges being led
astray. It was so unfortunate that the wife of a now retired Bombay High
Court Judge had to write to the then Chief Justice of our High Court that
her husband be not posted in Goa. It would be worthwhile to examine how a
Bombay High Court Judge was utterly corrupted by Atmaram Nadkarni to the
extent that this good Judge was often to be found regularly enjoying the
pleasures of life in a special room at a starred hotel, provided at the
behest of Atmaram Nadkarni.
14. Alike the politicians it was a public sponsored Atmaram Nadkarni’s 50th
birthday held on November 23rd 2013 at the five starred Taj Fort Aguada at
Sinquerim in Goa. The party which had around 400 guests with imported
Scotch whisky flowing through the night was estimated to have cost around
Rs 20 lakhs with a bill of Rs 14 lakhs for food and alcohol issued in the
name of then Calangute de-facto Sarpanch Joseph Sequeira who was in charge
of collecting money from all and sundry to foot the bill of Atmaram
Nadkarni’s that lavish birthday. The party was attended by some notorious
elements including some of the prime accused in the Goa illegal mining scam.
15. If a person like Atmaram Nadkarni is allowed to occupy the August chair
as Judge of the highest temple of Justice in our country, the Supreme Court
will be reduced to a den for fixing matters – and become a trader’s
paradise, producing many Shylocks. And this what would be a Judicial
catastrophic blunder under no circumstances can be allowed as the integrity
and sanctity of the Honourable Supreme Court of India must be preserved at
all cost.
16. I hope that Your Lordships will act appropriately in not considering
the name of Atmaram Nadkarni in view of his sordid and gory background as
stated above. In fact any proposal for his elevation should be nipped in
the bud.
17. Caroline Kennedy had so very rightly said “The bedrock of our democracy
is the rule of law and that means we have to have an independent judiciary,
judges who can make decisions independent of the political winds that are
blowing”
Yours most respectfully,
Aires Rodrigues
Advocate High Court
C/G-2, Shopping Complex
Ribandar Retreat,
Ribandar – Goa – 403006
Mobile No: 9822684372
Office Tel No: (0832) 2444012
Email: airesrodrigu...@gmail.com
Or
airesrodrig...@yahoo.com
You can also reach me on
Facebook.com/ AiresRodrigues
Twitter@rodrigues_aires
www.airesrodrigues.com
