I found out today that India has not had a Solicitor General for the past seven months. The last Solicitor General, Ranjit Kumar, resigned from the post in October of last year.
The Solicitor General is the second highest ranking legal advisor to the government, only below the Attorney General. While the post of a Solicitor General is not a constitutional one like that of the Attorney General, a person appointed to it still performs a very important role. It is necessary for the government to be well-represented so that the strictest legal scrutiny and defence is made possible for its own policies. At present, the Additional Solicitor Generals are bearing the responsibility of representing the government in important cases. This status quo is not ideal.
Such dithering over an appointment to the role does not reflect well on the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (AAC), the body responsible for filling the vacancy. One can only hope that an appointment to this important position is made sooner rather than later.