Nearly six years after retiring from the Supreme Court, Shivraj V. Patil heads to New Delhi Sunday to adjudicate on the appropriateness of the current norms to allocate airwaves to telecom players.
Patil, 70, will assume charge Monday as the one-man committee announced by Communications and IT Minister Kapil Sibal in New Delhi on Thursday.
‘In view of the urgency of the matter I am leaving for Delhi on Sunday evening for the scheduled first meeting Monday,’ Patil said.
He said though full terms of reference of the probe were not yet known to him, there have been discussions on it.
Patil said his task consists of two parts – whether appropriate norms were followed in allotment or norms have been flouted and measures to prevent their recurrence.
On whether four weeks would be sufficient for the job as it involves studying documents of nearly ten years – 2001 to 2009, he said the time-frame was only an expectation and not fixed as yet.
‘We will try out best to complete the task early. I cannot definitely say as of now (whether the task can be completed in four weeks,’ he said.
Patil said no investigation was involved nor was need for him to record any evidence as ‘this is not a commission of enquiry. We have to study whether any lapse has taken place or any procedure bypassed’.
Sibal, while announcing the setting up of the Patil panel, told reporters that the task includes identifying instances of lack of transparency and whether there was a violation of the policy enunciated by the Department of Telecommunication itself.
The panel will suggest remedial measures in that regard, he said.
Born Jan 12, 1940 at Maladkai in Raichur in north Karnataka, Patil started his law practice at neighbouring Gulbarga district in 1962 and continued there till 1979, making a name on both criminal and civil sides.
He also worked as part-time lecturer in Seth Shankarlal Lahoti Law College in Gulbarga from 1967 to 1975. He served as honorary principal of the same College for three years from 1975.
Patil shifted to Bangalore in 1979 to practice in the Karnataka High Court. He was appointed judge of the Karnataka High Court on March 29, 1990. In April 1994, he was transferred to Madras High Court and continued in the position till Dec 27, 1998.
He served very briefly as acting Chief Justice of the Madras High Court – from Dec 28, 1998 to Jan 19, 1999 and was then transferred as Chief Justice of Rajasthan High Court. He took charge on Jan 22, 1999.
Patil was elevated as judge of the Supreme Court on March 15, 2000. He retired on Jan 11, 2005.