Judicial misconduct

Judicial ethics rest on the uncompromising requirement of integrity, repeatedly affirmed through landmark case law. In Tarak Singh v. Jyoti Basu (2005) 1 SCC 201, the Supreme Court stressed that integrity is the hallmark of judicial discipline, warning that internal decay poses a greater threat to the justice system than external criticism. Similarly, High Court of Judicature for Rajasthan v. Ramesh Chand Paliwal (1998) 2 SCC 72 described judges as “hermits,” expected to rise above personal ambition and uphold moral purity. In Daya Shankar v. High Court of Allahabad (1987) 3 SCC 1, it was reaffirmed that judicial officers cannot maintain dual standards—one for the court and another for personal life. The Court in High Court of Judicature at Bombay v. Shashikant S. Patil (2000) 1 SCC 416 declared that dishonesty is the stark antithesis of judicial probity.