Quality of arguments determines judgments: CJ

‘Courts should render justice without fear or favour’

Indira Banerjee, Chief Justice of Madras High Court, inaugurating the combined court building at Perundurai in Erode district on Sunday.

The Chief Justice of the Madras High Court, Indira Banerjee, on Sunday said that the quality of judgments depended on the quality of the arguments advanced by advocates, and hence, the latter should come fully prepared to the court halls.

Inaugurating the combined court building and quarters for judicial officers at Perundurai, she said that the basic attributes of the judiciary were independence and impartiality, and the courts should render justice independently without fear or favour. “The hallmark of the judiciary is its integrity. Judges alone are not responsible for the functioning of this important pillar of democracy, but the advocates, litigants, and the parties concerned too,” she said.

Urging advocates not to seek unnecessary adjournments, she said that infrastructure facilities had been upgraded in courts.

A request for a museum on the court premises, which would have copies of important judgments, was put forth by Justice C.V. Karthikeyan of the Madras High Court.

If space was allotted for the purpose, the proposal will be considered and implemented, the Chief Justice said in reply.

She assured that she would consider a proposal submitted by the representatives of the Coimbatore Bar Council for starting a crèche on the court premises.

Clearing backlogs

She said judiciary aimed to dispose cases that have remained pending for over five years, and the target was to dispose of them by March 31, 2018.

“Though we have not succeeded in this regard, most of the cases were disposed of and efforts are on to complete the pending cases,” the Chief Justice added.