"Never dreamt a common person with no Godfather will be elevated to this position:" Justice JR Midha bids emotional farewell to Delhi High Court

Delhi High Court judge Justice JR Midha bid an emotional farewell to the High Court on Tuesday, his last day in office.

A teary-eyed Justice Midha in his farewell speech recounted his humble beginnings and thanked the system for elevating him to position of a judge despite having no Godfathers in the profession.

"I joined the bar in 1992 and got elevated in 2008. When I was only 13, I lost my father. I had no brother and a mere rental income of 500 Rupees only. When I joined the bar I started out with a briefcase and used to travel in the bus from Krishna Nagar to Tis Hazari. I had never dreamt that a common person with no godfather will be elevated to this position. I never thought I could reach that position. This very system has lifted me."

The virtual farewell organised by Delhi High Court Bar Association (DHCBA) through the Zoom platform was attended by DHCBA President Mohit Mathur, Secretary Abhijat and Senior Counsel Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi.

Senior Advocates Sidharth Luthra, Sandeep Sethi, Amandeep Singh Chandiok along Delhi High Court judge Justice Vipin Sanghi were also abound with praises for Justice Midha.

Justice Midha was appointed as an Additional Judge of Delhi High Court on April 11, 2008 and was made permanent on July 6, 2011.

Before elevation, Justice Midha practiced before the Delhi High Court, Supreme Court, and other forums including MRTP Commission, National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, etc.

From 1989 to 1992, Justice Midha taught at Campus Law Centre, Faculty of Law, Delhi University.

Looking back and recollecting his time as former student of Justice Midha's, DHCBA President Mohit Mathur added,

"I was his student in 1991 and he has impacted my life in great ways personally. I have been the recipient of his generosity. I was always a student who missed classes yet somehow I managed to pass the Civil Procedure Code examination because before the exam he told me to read Section 80. I read it 3-4 times and secured sufficient marks to pass the exam."

Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi also echoed Mathur's sentiments and shared his experience of working with Justice Midha and how he always valued work-life balance,

"When he became a judge I told him it was time to go back to a more genuine holistic work life balance which includes the art of making tea, meditation, sitting posture, best instruments to have that posture, both mental and physical; what to eat and what not to eat. I'm not sure of the work life balance anymore because of how he plunged into judging, completely immersing himself."

Marvelling at Justice Midha's body of work, Singhvi said,

"His research is so meticulous and so is his work in the field of Motor Vehicles Act. Being an animal lover like myself and appearing in Jallikattu and many other cases like the recent stray dogs judgement, he always strives to balance welfare and society. Above JR the lawyer is JR the man! His remarkable spirituality as opposed to pedantic religiosity is what makes him him. Always smiling. Always forgiving."

In his farewell speech, Justice Midha said that he always saw the work of a judge as meditation and took care to see that he never insulted any counsel while on the Bench.

"My eyes are not on the counsel, they are always only on the litigant. Reaching a position is one thing but to do good work and justify that position is another," he said.

Justice Midha said that he followed the policy of not dismissing any matter in default after one such case in 2013.

"I realised that this "innocent order" (of dismissing for default in appearance) had done damage to a litigant. So I felt very grave pain. In my meditation, I prayed to God that something innocently has gone wrong. But one thing which I adopted from that day, I think 2013, I never dismissed any matter in default. Even if a person does not come till 4 o clock, I tell the Courtmaster at 3 to call the lawyer. Even if the counsel is deliberately not coming, Ill force him to come," he said.

I never proceeded ex parte against anybody since 2013 or so, he added.

Justice Midha also said that he has never watched television for the last 13 years and never read newspapers beyond the headlines.

"For more than 13 years I have not seen television. I don't take dinner, I don't read newspapers except seeing the headlines. I have never slept completely, I am still short of sleep for the last 13 years," he said.

He, therefore, expressed hope that he will be able to get good sleep from tomorrow.

"I hope, from tomorrow, if I have the option, I'll sleep for six months and then wake up afresh," he said.

Justice Midha concluded by expressing his gratitude for everyone present at the function.

He expressed his passion for seeking the truth and urged all the members of the bar to always look for the truth in every matter.

"Truth is justice in action. It's always hiding under there somewhere."

Justice Midha had a few days ago given a landmark verdict on the rights of stray dogs.

He had held that stray dogs have the right to food and citizens have the right to feed community dogs.

The judgment also said that it is the duty and obligation of every Resident Welfare Association (RWA) or Municipal Corporation to ensure that stray dogs in every area have access to food and water in the absence of caregivers or community dog feeders.

A few weeks ago, he had dismissed a plea filed by Bollywood actor Juhi Chawla against the rollout of 5G technology in India.

He had said that it appeared that the suit was filed to garner publicity, noting how Chawla had circulated the web link of the hearing on social media.

He had, therefore, imposed costs of Rs. 20 lakh on Chawla and other plaintiffs for abusing the process of law.