The Indian who is presently a member of International Court of Justice

Question

The concept of per se disqualification is unknown to the Constitution. Any decision as to the disqualification proceedings under the Tenth Schedule must be taken after following the due process of law and the principles of natural justice. A member incurs disqualification only after adjudication by the Speaker. The procedure for the adjudication of disqualification petitions is prescribed under the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly (Disqualification on Ground of Defection) Rules 1986. The MLAs facing disqualification retain the right to participate in the proceedings of the House and vote on resolutions. Article 189(2) of the Constitution provides that any proceedings of the House are not invalid even if it is subsequently discovered that persons who were not entitled to participate or vote or otherwise take part in the proceedings, did so. In Pratap Gouda Patil v. State of Karnataka and Speaker, Haryana Vidhan Sabha v. Kuldeep Bishnoi, this Court observed that members should not be stopped from taking part in the proceedings of the House merely because disqualification proceedings were pending against them
Prior to the deletion of Paragraph 3 of the Tenth Schedule, the Speaker’s enquiry as to the existence of a split within a political party was limited to a prima facie determination for deciding the disqualification proceedings. As a result of the deletion of Paragraph 3, the authority of the Speaker to form even a prima facie opinion regarding a split within a political party has been removed. Upon the deletion of Paragraph 3, the only defence for disqualification proceedings under the Tenth Schedule are that of a merge under Paragraph 4. The Election Commission of India is the sole authority empowered to decide disputes between rival factions of a political party according to the provisions of the Symbols Order.
[Extracted from Subhash Desai v. Principal Secretary, Governor of Maharashtra (2023)]

Answer 1

The word presently in the question is the key, since it asks for the current sitting Indian judge rather than any Indian judge who has ever served on the Court.

Justice Nagendra Singh: A genuine former Indian member and President of the ICJ, but from an earlier period, not a contemporary sitting judge at the time the question was framed.
Justice A.S. Anand and Justice Bhagwati: Both eminent Chief Justices of India, but neither ever sat on the International Court of Justice.
Justice Dalveer Bhandari: The judge actually elected to and sitting on the International Court of Justice from 2012 onward, matching the word presently in the question.

Filtering for who was actually the current sitting Indian judge rather than a past one, the correct answer is Justice Dalveer Bhandari.

Answer 2

Another way to settle this is to separate the four names by their actual institutional roles rather than their general fame as jurists.

Justice A.S. Anand: His institutional roles were within India, as Chief Justice of India and later heading the National Human Rights Commission, with no international judicial appointment.
Justice Bhagwati: His institutional role was likewise domestic, as a transformative Chief Justice of India, without an ICJ appointment.
Justice Nagendra Singh: His institutional role did include the ICJ, including its presidency, but that chapter had already closed well before the period the question addresses.
Justice Dalveer Bhandari: His institutional role, uniquely among the four at the relevant time, was as a currently serving judge of the International Court of Justice, having been elected in 2012 and continuing in that office.

Sorting the four names by their actual institutional roles at the relevant time, the correct answer is Justice Dalveer Bhandari.

Answer 3

Another way to settle this is to separate the four names by their actual institutional roles rather than their general fame as jurists.

Justice A.S. Anand: His institutional roles were within India, as Chief Justice of India and later heading the National Human Rights Commission, with no international judicial appointment.
Justice Bhagwati: His institutional role was likewise domestic, as a transformative Chief Justice of India, without an ICJ appointment.
Justice Nagendra Singh: His institutional role did include the ICJ, including its presidency, but that chapter had already closed well before the period the question addresses.
Justice Dalveer Bhandari: His institutional role, uniquely among the four at the relevant time, was as a currently serving judge of the International Court of Justice, having been elected in 2012 and continuing in that office.

Sorting the four names by their actual institutional roles at the relevant time, the correct answer is Justice Dalveer Bhandari.

The Indian who is presently a member of International Court of Justice

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The Correct Option is C

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