The Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968 is a statutory Act of the Indian Parliament that regulates the procedure for the investigation and proof of "misbehaviour or incapacity" of a Judge of the Supreme Court or a High Court. Its origin lies in the mandate of Article 124(5) of the Constitution of India, which empowers Parliament to regulate the procedure for the presentation of an address to the President for a judge's removal and for the investigation of the charges. The Act was passed in 1968 to provide a detailed, uniform, and legally binding mechanism for the removal process, which is only permissible on the grounds of "proven misbehaviour or incapacity" as stated in Article 124(4) and Article 217 of the Constitution.
The mechanism begins when a motion for removal is initiated in Parliament, requiring the signature of at least 100 members of the Lok Sabha or 50 members of the Rajya Sabha. If the Speaker or Chairman admits the motion, they must constitute a three-member Inquiry Committee under Section 3 of the Act. This Committee comprises a Supreme Court Judge, a Chief Justice of a High Court, and a distinguished jurist. The Committee investigates the charges, frames definite charges, and gives the Judge a reasonable opportunity to present a written defence, as per Section 3(4). The Committee has the powers of a civil court, including summoning witnesses and requiring the production of documents, under Section 5. If the Committee's report finds the Judge guilty, the motion is then taken up in both Houses of Parliament, where it must be passed by a special majority—a majority of the total membership of that House and not less than two-thirds of the members present and voting—before the President can issue the removal order.
The Act is intrinsically connected to the constitutional provisions for judicial independence and accountability. While the Act itself has not been replaced, a significant proposed change was the Judges (Inquiry) Bill, 2006, which aimed to replace the ad-hoc committee with a permanent National Judicial Council (NJC) to investigate complaints, but this Bill did not become law. The Act remains the sole statutory framework for the removal of a superior court judge.