India implements a single integrated judicial hierarchy with the Supreme Court at the apex, followed by High Courts and the Subordinate Judiciary.
1. Appointment of Judges: The "Consultation" Debate
Under Articles 124(2) and 217(1), judges are appointed by the President after "consultation" with the Chief Justice of India (CJI). Decades of conflict over whether "consultation" meant "concurrence" led to the Three Judges Cases:
- First Judges Case (S.P. Gupta v. Union of India, 1981): Held that "consultation" does not mean "concurrence." The executive holds ultimate primacy in judicial appointments.
- Second Judges Case (1993): The Court reversed its view, holding that "consultation" means "concurrence." The CJI's opinion holds absolute primacy to protect judicial independence, introducing the Collegium System (CJI + 2 senior-most judges).
- Third Judges Case (1998): Expanded the Collegium to CJI + 4 senior-most judges for Supreme Court appointments, and CJI + 2 senior-most judges for High Court appointments.
Parliament passed the 99th Amendment to replace the Collegium with the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC), which included the Union Law Minister. The Supreme Court struck down the amendment as unconstitutional, declaring that judicial independence represents a Basic Structure element, and executive representation in appointments directly threatens this independence.