Akansha Singh –
C.J.I. N.V. Raman said a letter from a Supreme Court judge he received when he was designated as the 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 read of the letter from former S.C. judge Justice R.V. Raveendran.
The former C.J.I. was talking at the digital launch of the e-book Anomalies in Law and Justice authored by Justice Raveendran on Saturday.
The former C.J. Ramana noted Justice Raveendran rising from a humble background in the apex court had “no family pedigree in the profession”. The CJI is also a first-generation lawyer.
C.J. 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”.
He referred to Justice Raveendran’s rise to the top court from a humble background, with “no family pedigree in the profession”. He is also a first-generation lawyer. He took lessons 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,” stated C.J. Ramana.
At the time of penal talks, the CJI Ramana expressed concern regarding poor connectivity in rural, tribal, remote and hilly areas. It was said that this concern had cropped up prominently during his two-day conference with Chief Justices of High Courts. He also said the “digital divide” is contrarily affecting the speed of delivery of justice. It has also formed the consequence of the loss of livelihood of thousands of young legal professionals.
Chief Justice Ramana said he had recently written to the Minister of Law, Communications and IT requesting him to “bridge the divide” and provide financial assistance to legal professionals. The CJI highlighted the need to declare authorized professionals as frontline employees.