Which of the following statements about the salaries and allowances of the judges of the Supreme Court and the High Courts in India is NOT correct?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → The judges of both the Supreme Court and the High Courts are paid their salaries from the Consolidated Fund of India.
The salaries and allowances of Supreme Court judges are charged on the Consolidated Fund of India (Article 112(3)(d)), but those of High Court judges are charged on the Consolidated Fund of the State (Article 202(3)(d)). Only the pensions of High Court judges come from the Consolidated Fund of India, so the statement is not correct.
Option (1) — correct statement: charged expenditure is not put to the vote of Parliament or the State Legislature (Articles 113 and 203), though it may be discussed.
Option (3) — correct statement: Articles 125(2) and 221(2) bar any change in a judge’s allowances, leave or pension to his disadvantage after appointment, and only a direction during a financial emergency under Article 360(4) can reduce the salaries of judges.