The Supreme Court collegium has sent back for reconsideration the names of seven advocates whom Orissa High Court had recommended for appointment as its judges, noting that most of them lacked the minimum “annual professional income” required for elevation to the bench.

It has deferred the candidature of an eighth advocate for later consideration and rejected recommendations to promote three trial court judges to the high court, while clearing a fourth.

Sources said the minimum annual professional income is not made public to protect the interests of the aspirants and the confidentiality of the appointment process.

The then chief justice of the high court had recommended the eight advocates on May 18.

“We have carefully scrutinised the material placed on record, including certain complaints against some of the recommendees and the observations made by the department of justice in the file. Apart from this, we invited three of the above-named recommendees with a view to have an interaction with them,” the Supreme Court collegium, made up of the Chief Justice and the four other senior-most judges, said.

“On the basis of interaction and/or having regard to all relevant factors, the collegium is of the considered view that… the proposal in respect of Shri Rudra Prasad Kar… be remitted to the Orissa High Court since he does not qualify the existing norms, his average net professional annual income for the preceding five years being less than the prescribed income limit applicable in case of Bar members.”

It also rejected the candidatures of Pranaya Kishore Harichandan, Bimbisar Dash, Narasingh V, Tushar Kanti Satapathy, Bishnu Prasad Pradhan and Sameer Kumar Das, mostly on the same ground.

“The proposal in respect of Kali Prasanna Mishra… deserves to be deferred for the present. His case would be taken up for consideration by the collegium after some time,” the collegium said.

It said the trial court judges Satyanarayan Mishra, Bibhu Prasad Routray and Gautam Sharma “do not qualify the prevailing norms of eligibility” but cleared Akshaya Kumar Mishra for elevation to the high court.

“We have had the occasion to interact with him. On the basis of interaction and having regard to all relevant factors, the collegium is of the considered view that Dr Akshaya Kumar Mishra is suitable…,” it said.

The apex court collegium cleared 13 trial court judges from Uttar Pradesh for elevation to Allahabad High Court: Ram Krishna Gautam, Umesh Kumar, Pradeep Kumar Srivastava, Anil Kumar, Rajendra Kumar, Mohd Faiz Alam Khan, Vikas Kunvar Srivastava, Virendra Kumar Srivastava, Suresh Kumar Gupta, Sushri Ghandikota Sree Devi, Narendra Kumar Johari, Raj Beer Singh and Ajit Singh.

Three judicial officers including the present secretary-general of the Supreme Court have been cleared for elevation to Uttarakhand High Court. They are: Narayan