In Conversation with former Chief Justice of India, Aziz Mushabber Ahmadi

One of the few judges from the subordinate judiciary to make it to the Supreme Court, and later become the Chief Justice of India, AM Ahmadi has an extremely sharp sense of humour. Describing himself as a “taskmaster”, in this interview the retired judge talks about his childhood, his time as a trial court judge, Chief Justice of India and the lessons he learnt along the way..The early years.Son of a junior civil judge, Ahmadi spent a large part of his early years living in various districts and talukas. Although he grew up in a “legal atmosphere”, it was sports that held his interest, something that his father disapproved of..My father did not like this because he thought I was wasting my time. But I personally think that [sports] is a very important element in life because it makes the person complete..Eventually, he settled down in Ahmedabad from where he completed his matriculation and joined the prestigious Gujarat College, as it was then known. It was a decision made by his father, one that he would eventually rebel against..My father wanted me to go for engineering so he put me in the Science stream. After a while, I realized this was not my cup of tea. So I hopped into the law field and joined the law college. I did my first [year of] law from the Sir LA Shah College in Ahmedabad but when my father was transferred to Surat, I completed my law from the Sarvajanik Law College..Clearing the enrollment examination in his first attempt, Ahmadi started his practice in 1954, appearing in the trial courts of Ahmedabad. Six months in, his senior decided to retire from the profession, forcing Ahmadi to look for another senior. Ahmadi’s father then approached MJ Merchant, a senior lawyer reputed to be one of the best criminal lawyers..Merchant’s reply, recounts Ahmadi, was typical of the man. Merchant told Ahmadi’s father that Ahmadi was,.“Now ready to swim. Daal do andar. Thoda paani pee jayegga toh theek hai” (Throw him in the river, if he swallows a little water so be it).Ask Ahmadi if he drank any water, and the answer comes rocketing back..Paani to peena padta hai. (You have to drink the water) But, God was kind to me and within a very short time I had a good practice..And although he understates the difficulties of litigation, his observations on clients are as true then as they are now..Clients are very interesting characters. They make all sorts of enquiries before they come to you. They see you arguing in courts. And one consideration would be that a junior lawyer is not going to charge very heavily..The trial judge.Ten years into the profession, aged just thirty-two, he was appointed as a judge in the City Civil and Sessions Court, Ahmedabad. It was a highly desirable post and for good reason..We had unlimited original side jurisdiction. On the criminal side, you could also give the death sentence. It was a virtual training ground for becoming a judge of the High Court..Yet, Ahmadi says that he had absolutely no inkling of his appointment. Called to the Chief Justice’s chambers, Ahmadi recollects the nervous, “immature young lawyer” waiting and wondering why he had been summoned by Chief Justice JM Shelat, a judge who had a tough reputation..I was worried because I had started, at the behest of some city civil judges, to file appearances in the High Court. Otherwise I never went to the High Court.Anyway he talked to me about several things. He mentioned that I was doing well at the Bar and then he offered me the position. So like any young immature man, I said, “Your Lordship, you know my age?” He replied, “We know more about you, than you do!”.Seeking some time to consult his family, Ahmadi said that he needed to know if his wife would be willing to live, “the life of a judge’s wife”. It would be a life filled with a number of restrictions. Finances would also be hit, with a judge’s salary far lower than what Ahmadi was making at the Bar. In the end, Mrs. Ahmadi agreed..Initially his biggest problem was sitting with his father’s colleagues whom, until very recently, he used to refer to as his “uncles”. There were also apprehensions that he was simply too young for the post. Ahmadi soon let his work do the talking..One of the matters that came up before me was a question of law relating to adoption under Hindu law. The treatise on Hindu law, Mulla & Mulla said some thing that I disagreed with. So I gave my judgment and immediately, there was a reaction in the Bar, “How could I teach them about Hindu law?” Anyway, the advocate who succeeded sent it to Chief Justice Desai, the editor of Mulla and in the next edition, that particular point was corrected!.There was another incident involving the trial of a high-profile murder. There were twenty-two accused, four special public prosecutors and a total of one hundred and sixty-nine witnesses were examined. Once evidence was completed and arguments presented, Ahmadi began dictating the judgment in open court..I called the steno and began dictating the judgment. I knew that if I reserve the judgment, they would think my father would write it. I did not want that to happen so I dictated the judgment for two and a half days in open court..It was during his time at the trial courts that Ahmadi picked up skills that he would repeatedly use throughout his career. He soon began experimenting with management principles and their application on judicial machinery. One such instance was the clearing of fifteen hundred execution decrees..The fifteen hundred orders, darkhwast we used to call them, were sent to me. I then divided the orders into separate categories under different CPC provisions. One day in a week, only Order 32 matters would be heard.So now you knew what cases were going to be listed. You could hear the objections by the lawyers and then pass the order. Jungam warrant (attach movables) we used to call them..Secretary, Legal Department.It was skills such as these that were put to good use his next stint as Secretary in Gujarat’s Legal Department. It was a position that Ahmadi had initially refused to take up; at that time he was the senior-most judge and “knocking at the door of the High Court”. It was only when a former chief justice advised him to take the position, did Ahmadi relent...When I went there, I realized that legal opinions are taking a long time and that opinion becomes of no use to the administrative department. So soon after I joined, I called a meeting of senior officials and told them that opinions should not take more than two months. Some of them laughed. I created a cell in the library just for research. I said that as soon as an opinion is sought, the section officer of the branch will immediately read it and sum it up in three or four lines and send it to the library for research. The research wing will take not more than week’s time to examine and send it back with relevant citations etc..In essence, he created a structure whereby each official had to clear the opinion within a pre-determined period. Failure to do so would require an explanation from the concerned official..Each time there was a delay, the officer would have to explain. And you must earn a bad reputation, “He shouts a lot” or something of that sort..Twenty months later, in September 1976 Ahmadi found himself back in the judiciary, this time as a judge of the High Court and aged forty-four. A seat at the Supreme Court was a given, but it remained to be seen whether he would make it as Chief Justice of India. He did..On December 14, 1988 AM Ahmadi was sworn in as judge of the Supreme Court, along with four other judges. Six years later, he would become the Chief Justice of India and would be involved in a number of far-reaching judgments. One of which was the “Second Judges” case, where he delivered a dissenting opinion. Till today, it is clear that he was not in favour of the collegium system..I knew that [the collegium system] would be difficult to work. After all, we are all human beings. If earlier, people would appeal to the Law Minister, now they would appeal to the judges on the selection panel.You see, one may have a liking for one judge and a dislike for another. Even though the oath you take may say something else, actual implementation is something else..He is equally critical of the proposed replacement to the collegium system, the Judicial Appointments Commission..You see when they were trying to change the system of appointments to this Judicial Appointments Commission, I had said that the Chief Justice and two senior most judges – all are very close to retirement. All you have to do is show a lollipop to one and that is all that is required. Today, I don’t think any outside system will work. I still think the Constitutional provisions are the best..The Chief Justice of India.As CJI, Ahmadi had an interesting tenure; one of his earliest challenges were dealing with a High Court chief justice facing allegations of impropriety..The judge said that he needed time to which I agreed. But I asked him not to sit on the Bench. One day, I came to know that he sat on the Bench and I immediately spoke to him. I told him that our process of consultation has come to an end. I said, “I am giving you three days. By the end of it, your papers must be on the table.”I also told him, “You must be knowing that at the most I can transfer you.” But you see the Chief Justice can also finish someone’s reputation by revealing certain facts. So of course it is a delicate matter that needs to be handled sensitively but the CJI has his own reputation to maintain..He also introduced the concept of judicial clerks in the Supreme Court, selecting a then fresh law graduate Arun Thiruvengadam as the first judicial clerk of the apex court..I thought that I was not getting time for research on important matters. I told him that I would not be able to pay him too much. He said, he was not in it for the money and would be happy to work with me..The other important development during his tenure as CJI was the massive reduction in pendency..The work that we did in the Supreme Court was incredible. The first thing I did was to get docket pendency analysed. I knew that we would be able to fight the pendency without too much difficulty. I always had this as a slogan, “Don’t get scared by numbers”I found that certain litigation, such as taxation, was huge. And this pendency was only because it was scattered across different Benches. I got these connected matters placed before one Bench.In my time, we did not have what one might say, “a” case being heard. We had connected matters, some times there would be five hundred cases connected. The counsels would be asked then how many days it would take. Say they required a week, the matter would be placed before one Bench for one week. .It certainly worked. By the time he retired, Ahmadi says that the pendency was down to eighteen hundred cases, down from the one lac twenty thousand cases pending when he became CJI..One of the judges in a lighter vein said, “Chief Justice, when can we expect retrenchment?” to which I replied, “You are safe. Don’t worry.”.Of course it wasn’t all a bed of roses. One of the most high profile cases heard by Ahmadi related to Bhopal Gas tragedy, with allegations that his decision had “diluted” the charges and punishment of the accused. The allegations hurt. This much is clear..If the media gives out a wrong impression and it is not honest in its approach, then there is a need to correct it. Do you see who is criticizing? Those who know nothing about the law, the philosophy of the law or the nuances of the law – they are the ones who are criticizing. So why bother too much about them?There was a curative petition filed. Five judges dealt with it and the media did not have the grace of saying that this is the result of the curative petition..The post-retirement days.After he retired from the Supreme Court, Ahmadi ended up dealing with a number of arbitration matters. Within a short span of time, he was handling some of the biggest arbitrations in the country..I chose arbitration because I thought it was good, honorable work. But like every system, it does have some drawbacks. It is not operated in the right spirit. Litigation takes a long time but so does arbitration. But we must also understand that had the litigation gone to the courts, it would have taken thrice as long.I think the judicial interference is too much. This interference was supposed to be minimal but in almost every matter, an appeal is filed. And once an appeal is filed, the matter is automatically stayed because that is what the law says..When it comes to possible solutions, he says part of the problem is the attitude of the Bar itself..Right now, for example, lawyers ask for these matters to be held after 4 pm so that they can finish their court work. So effectively, there is about two-three hours of work. What can be done in such a short time? See, there has to be a separate Bar for arbitrations. This has to develop.