“At the fag end of my journey in this profession (I have a year and two months in the Supreme Court), I am a sad man.”.That was how Justice Jasti Chelameswar of Supreme Court began his speech at the launch of a book by Kerala Advocate Kaleeswaram Raj. The book titled ‘Rethinking Judicial Reforms – Reflections on Indian Legal System’ was launched by Justice Chelameswar at an event organised at the Indian Law Institute, New Delhi..At the event, Justice Chelameswar also spoke about the problems plaguing the judicial system..“As far as the judicial appointments are concerned, there can never be a final word on this matter,” said Chelameswar J, in a rather diplomatic fashion, even though he has been quite vocal about his disagreement with the Collegium system in the recent past..He also went on to note that,.“Whether we are picking the best possible material for the Bench is a question each person needs to answer for themselves.”.In fact, the judge had an interesting anecdote to share from his time at the Gauhati High Court. As Chief Justice, Chelameswar J. was to select 75 candidates for the post of judicial officers. He received a delegation from a local organised action alleging that the “children of the soil” were not selected. Justice Chelameswar tried to convince them otherwise, noting that the Constitution was territory blind. It did not recognize the sons of the soil theory; in fact it specifically prohibits it..When he failed to convince them, he warned that he would ultimately leave the Court in a few years, but they would be stuck with the less meritorious candidate for decades..Chelameswar J. refrained from disclosing the outcome of the matter..He also spoke about docket explosion in Supreme Court, especially the appeals which come up for admission to Supreme Court on Mondays and Fridays..“At least 60% of the cases that come before the Supreme Court on Mondays and Fridays should not cross the gates of the High Courts”, was his take on the problem..Also finding place in the narrative were age old problems of delays and management issues in the judicial arena. He went on to explain the woeful tales of lower courts caught up by conflicting precedents of the Supreme Court, a problem that is compounded as one moves up the judicial hierarchy..The sentiments were met with a tacit concurrence by Justice Kurian Joseph, who refrained from adding anything to the speech, instead choosing to accept it in its entirety..The event was also graced by Senior Advocates Raju Ramachandran and R Basant.
“At the fag end of my journey in this profession (I have a year and two months in the Supreme Court), I am a sad man.”.That was how Justice Jasti Chelameswar of Supreme Court began his speech at the launch of a book by Kerala Advocate Kaleeswaram Raj. The book titled ‘Rethinking Judicial Reforms – Reflections on Indian Legal System’ was launched by Justice Chelameswar at an event organised at the Indian Law Institute, New Delhi..At the event, Justice Chelameswar also spoke about the problems plaguing the judicial system..“As far as the judicial appointments are concerned, there can never be a final word on this matter,” said Chelameswar J, in a rather diplomatic fashion, even though he has been quite vocal about his disagreement with the Collegium system in the recent past..He also went on to note that,.“Whether we are picking the best possible material for the Bench is a question each person needs to answer for themselves.”.In fact, the judge had an interesting anecdote to share from his time at the Gauhati High Court. As Chief Justice, Chelameswar J. was to select 75 candidates for the post of judicial officers. He received a delegation from a local organised action alleging that the “children of the soil” were not selected. Justice Chelameswar tried to convince them otherwise, noting that the Constitution was territory blind. It did not recognize the sons of the soil theory; in fact it specifically prohibits it..When he failed to convince them, he warned that he would ultimately leave the Court in a few years, but they would be stuck with the less meritorious candidate for decades..Chelameswar J. refrained from disclosing the outcome of the matter..He also spoke about docket explosion in Supreme Court, especially the appeals which come up for admission to Supreme Court on Mondays and Fridays..“At least 60% of the cases that come before the Supreme Court on Mondays and Fridays should not cross the gates of the High Courts”, was his take on the problem..Also finding place in the narrative were age old problems of delays and management issues in the judicial arena. He went on to explain the woeful tales of lower courts caught up by conflicting precedents of the Supreme Court, a problem that is compounded as one moves up the judicial hierarchy..The sentiments were met with a tacit concurrence by Justice Kurian Joseph, who refrained from adding anything to the speech, instead choosing to accept it in its entirety..The event was also graced by Senior Advocates Raju Ramachandran and R Basant.
