Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana said a letter from a former Supreme Court judge at the time of his appointment as top judge, to act with courage in “these testing days”, became the roadmap for his tenure.
“I feel that this message is indeed the roadmap for my journey as the Chief Justice of India. I shall treasure this message forever,” Chief Justice Ramana said of the letter from former Supreme Court judge Justice R.V. Raveendran.
The Chief Justice was speaking on Saturday at the virtual launch of Anomalies in Law and Justice , a book authored by Justice Raveendran.
Chief Justice Ramana read out Justice Raveendran’s letter, which said, “These are difficult days. Challenging days. Testing days. Being a Chief Justice requires courage to act, commitment to the cause of justice, concern for the common man, tact to deal with and obtain the cooperation of the brother judges in addition to the qualities expected of a judge. You possess all of them in abundance. Let the almighty lead you to a purposeful, meaningful and successful tenure”.
Chief Justice Ramana referred to Justice Raveendran’s rise to the top court from a humble background, with “no family pedigree in the profession”. The CJI is also a first-generation lawyer.
Chief Justice Ramana took a leaf from Justice Raveendran’s legacy in the Supreme Court.
“He never tried, or made an attempt, to project himself as the saviour of the judicial process. He continued to be humble and believed that the office which he held did not exist for himself... He believed in the dictum, as Lord Denning said, ‘that the best judge is one who is less known and seen in the media’,” Chief Justice Ramana said.
During the course of the panel discussion, the CJI expressed concern about the poor connectivity in rural, tribal, remote and hilly areas. He said this issue had figured prominently during his two-day conference with Chief Justices of High Courts. He said the “digital divide” was adversely impacting the pace of justice delivery. It has also deprived thousands of young lawyers of their livelihood.
Chief Justice Ramana said he had recently written to the Minister of Law, Communications and IT, requesting him to “bridge the divide” and offer financial assistance to lawyers. The CJI highlighted the need to declare legal professionals as frontline workers.
