'Can't cut salary of Judges', HC Registrar General reminded Govt, 'No such plans' it responded

The Registrar General of Kerala High Court has written to the chief secretary of state government saying that the salaries of the judges cannot be varied or deferred through an executive order.

In the letter, the Kerala High Court Registrar General said that as per Article 221 of the Constitution of India, the salaries are paid to the judges as determined by the Parliament and they shall not be varied to their disadvantage after the appointment.

"The salaries and allowances of the Chief Justice and Judges of the Kerala High Court cannot be varied or deferred by the government, through an executive order," the letter said.Kerala government had decided to defer 6-day salaries of state government employees for a period of five months in view of the coronavirus crisis.

However, the move was stayed by Kerala High Court on Tuesday for two months.The Registrar General said that the Chief Justice of Kerala High Court has already taken the initiative to collect donations from the judges for Chief Minister Disaster Relief Fund.

The letter said:

The Kerala Government clarified that it had no plans to recover any amount from the emoluments of the judges of the High Court after its Registrar General shot off a letter informing their salaries cannot be deferred through an executive order.

"No decision has been taken on the salary cut or deferring of the salary of High Court judges at the state government level. They are part of the Constitutional body," Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told reporters in Thiruvananthapuram. "A decision on that should be taken separately," said Pinarayi.

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