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Polarisation across world marked by social media growth, intolerance: CJI

The polarisation across the world, with India not being an exception, is marked by the growth of social media and growing intolerance among communities, Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud has said here. Speaking at the Jamnalal Bajaj Awards function on Friday, he also said that India's pluralistic culture and "ability to engage in dialogue" set it apart from many other countries which got independence during the same period but could not sustain democracy. "Much of the polarisation which we see across the globalised world....the polarisation between right and left and the centre...the polarisation which we experience across the world and India is no exception, is also marked by the growth of social media, the sense of intolerance among communities, the short attention span which the younger generation has," Chandrachud said. This was not an isolated phenomenon, and free markets and technology produced it, he added. The CJI also spoke about how India's post-independence journey

I myself am servant of law: CJI on reforming SC's Collegium system

He said though CJI has brought many reforms, the reforms relating to Collegium and senior designation were much needed to take the judiciary to new heights

As a judge, I am servant of law and Constitution: CJI D Y Chandrachud

Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud on Friday said that as a judge, he is a "servant" of the law and the Constitution and has to follow the position that has been laid down. As soon as a bench headed by the CJI assembled for the day's proceedings, advocate Mathews J Nedumpara mentioned a matter before the court. The lawyer then told the bench, also comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, about the need for reforms in the collegium system as well as abolition of the senior advocate designation. "You have the freedom to pursue your heart's desire. As the Chief Justice of India, but more importantly, as a judge first, I am a servant of the law and the Constitution," Justice Chandrachud said. "I have to follow a position which has been laid down," he said, adding, "I cannot say this is what I like and I will do it." In October this year, the apex court had dismissed a plea challenging the designation of lawyers as senior advocates, saying the petition was a "misadventure

Imperative to amplify justice needs of under-represented, says CJI

Access to justice cannot be secured only by crafting pro-people jurisprudence in judgements but requires active progress on the administrative side of the court such as improving infrastructure and enhancing legal aid services, Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud said on Monday. Speaking at the first Regional Conference on Access to Legal Aid organised by National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) here, Chandrachud said the challenge for judges is not to do justice in the facts of the individual case but to institutionalise the processes and look beyond the immediate as well. "Access to justice is not a right that can be secured only by crafting pro-people jurisprudence in our judgements rather it requires active progress on the administrative side of the court as well," Chandrachud said. The CJI said the discourse about human rights and access to justice has historically been monopolised by voices from the Global North (industrialised nations) which makes such dialogues ...

Citizens should not be afraid of approaching courts: CJI Chandrachud

The Supreme Court has acted as a "people's court" and citizens should not be afraid of going to courts or view it as the last resort, Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud said on Sunday. Justice Chandrachud said just as the Constitution allows us to resolve political differences through established democratic institutions and processes, the courts system helps in resolving many disagreements through established principles and processes. "In this way, every case in every court in the country is an extension of constitutional governance," the CJI said while speaking at the inauguration of the Constitution Day celebrations at the apex court. President Droupadi Murmu delivered the inaugural address at the programme, which was also attended by apex court judges Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice Sanjiv Khanna, Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal and others. In his address, the CJI said, "In the last seven decades, the Supreme Court of India has acted as a people's court. Thousand

We are confronted with fundamental questions on ethical AI treatment: CJI

Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud on Saturday said identity and its recognition by the State plays a crucial part in what resources people get and their ability to express their grievances and demand their rights. Addressing the plenary session of the 36th 'LAWASIA' conference virtually, he spoke on "Identity, the Individual and the State - New Paths to liberty". LAWASIA is a regional association of lawyers, judges, jurists and legal organisations, which advocates for the interests and concerns of the Asia Pacific legal progression. Noting that liberty is the ability to make choices for oneself and change our course of life, the Chief Justice said identity intersects with the person's agency and life choices. "As lawyers, we are constantly confronted with this intersection and the role of the State to limit or expand the life opportunities of the people. While the relationship between the state and liberty has been understood widely, the task of establishing and explaining the

What was TN governor doing for 3 yrs?: SC questions delay on bills

On Saturday, the Tamil Nadu Assembly held a special session to re-adopt all ten bills, which were sent back to Governor RN Ravi for his assent

Judges must retire to enable successors rejig old legal principles: CJI

Judges must retire so the succeeding generations point out errors of the past and rejig legal principles for society to evolve, Chief Justice DY Chandrachud said on Saturday. Sharing his perspective on the retirement age of judges at the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit here, Chandrachud said while the American constitution has no age of retirement for judges, in India, judges retire after a particular age. The CJI said it would be "too much of a responsibility" cast on human beings in terms of their own infallibility by postulating that they should not retire from office. "We have followed a model where judges retire. But as someone who has been in the system for 23 years as a judge, I have a different take. In a sense, it is important that judges must retire because its too much of a responsibility to cast on a human being in terms of their own infallibility by postulating that they should not retire from their office. "Judges are human beings prone to errors and societies evolv

Legislature can enact fresh law to cure deficiency, can't overrule it: CJI

Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud on Saturday said the legislature can enact a fresh law to cure a deficiency in a judgment but it cannot directly overrule it. Speaking at the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit here, Chandrachud said judges don't think about how the society would respond when they decide cases and that is the difference between the elected arm of the government and the judiciary. "There is a dividing line between what the legislature can do, and what the legislature can't do when there is a judgment of the court. If a judgment decides a particular issue and it points out a deficiency in law, it is always open for the legislature to enact a fresh law to cure the deficiency," the CJI said. "What the legislature cannot do is to say that we think the judgment is wrong and therefore we overrule the judgment. The judgment of a court cannot be directly overruled by the legislature," the CJI said. He also said judges are guided by constitutional morality and not public morality

Electoral bonds scheme wholly arbitrary, has to be struck down: Sibal to SC

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal said the Electoral Bonds scheme is wholly arbitrary and has to be struck down

Sometimes it's vote of conscience: CJI on judgement on queer couples

CJI Chandrachud was speaking at the 3rd Comparative Constitutional Law discussion on the topic 'Perspectives from the Supreme Courts of India and the United States'

Legal system often played key role in perpetuating historical wrongs: CJI

Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud has said that unfortunately the legal system has often played a "pivotal role" in perpetuating "historical wrongs" against marginalised social groups and the harm caused by this can persist for generations. Chandrachud delivered the keynote address at the Sixth International Conference on the Unfinished Legacy of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar' at the Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts, on Sunday. In his address titled Reformation Beyond Representation: The Social Life of the Constitution in Remedying Historical Wrongs', Chandrachud said that throughout history, marginalised social groups have been subjected to horrendous, egregious wrongs, often stemming from prejudice, discrimination and unequal power dynamics. From the brutal transatlantic slave trade that forcibly uprooted millions of Africans, the Native American displacement, caste inequalities in India affecting millions of backward castes to the oppression of indigenous Adivasi communities

Unmarried couples, including queer couples, can jointly adopt child: CJI

Unmarried couples, including queer couples, can jointly adopt a child, the Supreme Court said on Tuesday while striking down a Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) regulation that allows only married couples to adopt children. A five-judge Constitution bench of the top court on Tuesday unanimously refused to accord legal recognition to same-sex marriages under the Special Marriage Act, ruling that it is within the Parliament's ambit to change the law for validating such a union. Writing a 247-page separate judgement, Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud struck down Regulation 5(3) of the CARA, saying it is violative of the rights of the queer community and that the CARA has exceeded its authority in barring unmarried couples from adopting children. The five-judge bench, however, passed a 3:2 verdict against adoption rights for the LGBTQIA++ community. While the CJI and Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul opined that queer couples should be given adoption rights, Justices Ravin

CJI on same-sex marriage: Parl can change law, we can only interpret

The court can't make law but only interpret it and it is for Parliament to change the Special Marriage Act, Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud said on Tuesday while pronouncing his verdict on 21 pleas seeking legal validation for same-sex marriages. At the outset, Justice Chandrachud said there are four judgments -- by himself, Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul, S Ravindra Bhat and P S Narasimha -- in the matter. Justice Hima Kohli is also a part of the five-judge bench. Directing the Centre, states and Union Territories (UTs) to ensure that the queer community is not discriminated against, the CJI, who is heading the constitution bench, said queer is a natural phenomenon known for ages and is neither urban nor elitist. Justice Kaul said he agrees with the CJI on grant of certain rights to queer couples. "Non-heterosexual and heterosexual unions must be seen as both sides of same coin," he said, adding that legal recognition of non-heterosexual unions is step towards marriage .

Tech-friendly systems must be complemented by judges' mindset change: CJI

Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud on Saturday said technology-friendly legal systems must be complemented by a change in mindset of each judge, member of the bar, registry official and administrative staff. Technology is a source of inclusion and any resistance to it often stems from "inner inertia to disturb the status quo and fear of the unknown", he said. CJI Chandrachud was speaking at an event here to celebrate the platinum jubilee of the Rajasthan High Court. He also inaugurated the paperless court and Telegram channel of the High Court. "Our move towards a technology-friendly legal system must be complemented by a change in the mindset of every judge, every member of the bar, registry official and administrative staff," the chief justice said. Citing conditions set by some high courts for litigants to get access to a digital link for video conferencing, he said, "Technology is only for the old and not for the young... these mindsets have to change. In our revolution to

Rise in number of women judges nation-wide trend: CJI Chandrachud

Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud on Friday referred to the significant increase in the number of women judicial officers and said it was a countrywide trend. At the outset of the proceedings, the CJI said, "We wish to share some happy news. Here in the back row (in the courtroom), we have 75 judges from the civil judge junior division from Maharashtra. Out of a batch of 75 judges, 42 are women and 33 men." "This is a trend happening across the country. There are more women judges in numbers," the CJI, who was sitting on a bench with Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, said. Justice Chandrachud said he would meet the judicial officers, including the women judges, during the lunch hour. Some lawyers, including senior advocate Dushyant Dave, asked the CJI to take steps to raise the number of women judges in the apex court. "The appointments made today are a reflection of the bar 15 years ago," the CJI said. Recently, former Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) presid

SC appoints sign-language interpreter to help hearing-impaired persons

Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud on Friday announced the appointment of a sign-language interpreter by the Supreme Court to help hearing-impaired lawyers and litigants to comprehend judicial proceedings. "Today, we have an interpreter whom the Supreme Court has appointed," the CJI said at the outset of the proceedings. "This is a historic moment," a lawyer said. The CJI said he wanted to have a sign-language interpreter for the Constitution bench hearings. On September 22, a bench headed by the CJI heard hearing-impaired lawyer Sarah Sunny through sign-language interpreter Saurav Roy Chowdhury in a case related to the rights of persons with disability (PwD). Lawyers and bar bodies had lauded the fact that the Supreme Court allowed a hearing-impaired lawyer to argue a case through a sign-language interpreter. CJI Chandrachud, who is sensitive towards providing accessibility to justice delivery systems to the differently-abled, also constituted a Supreme Court committee

16 media bodies write to CJI on 'repressive use' of investigating agencies

The associations said that as journalists and news professionals, we are always ready and willing to cooperate with any bona fide investigation

Legal profession will thrive depending on how we maintain integrity: CJI

Our profession will continue to thrive or it will self-destruct based on whether we do or do not maintain our integrity, Chief Justice of India Dhananjay Chandrachud said here on Sunday. Integrity is the core of the legal profession, the CJI asserted. Integrity is not eroded by one thunderstorm, it gets eroded by small, little concessions and compromises made by lawyers and judges, the CJI said while speaking at the an event on the theme 'Enhancing collaboration between Advocates & Judges: Towards strengthening legal system'. "Our profession will continue to thrive or it will self-destruct based on whether we do or do not maintain our integrity. Integrity is eroded not by one thunderstorm, it erodes by small little concessions and compromises which are made by lawyers and judges," he said. "We all sleep with our conscience. You can fool the whole world but can't fool your conscience. It keeps on asking questions every night. Integrity is the core of the legal profession. With ...

Supreme Court joins National Judicial Data Grid: Here's how it works

National Judicial Data Grid is a national portal that holds real-time information and data on all cases, pending and disposed, by courts across the country