"Supreme Court's loss was Kerala's gain": AG Gopalakrishna Kurup on non-elevation of Chief Justice S Manikumar to apex court

Kerala Advocate General and Senior Advocate K Gopalakrishna Kurup on Thursday said that he was surprised at the fact that Kerala High Court Chief Justice S Manikumar was not elevated to the Supreme Court despite his notable career, both as a member of the bar and the bench. .The Advocate General (AG) pointed out that the Chief Justice had spent 13 years as a judge of the Madras High Court which is a chartered high court, and already had over 2 decades of experience as a lawyer, at times representing the Central government, State government, and even the Madras High Court itself, before being elevated to the Bench. "Your lordship had put in nearly 13 years as the judge of a chartered High Court. Your lordships came to the bench with vast experience of more than 2 decades of successful practice in a chartered High Court during which period your lordship was the law officer of the Union and State govt as well as other institutions including the Madras High Court. Your lordship has put in nearly 4 years as CJ of this High Court. Your lordships judicial years have been spent only for dispensation of justice which your lordship did as satisfactorily as possible. I find no reason whatsoever for not elevating your lordship to the Apex court. I leave it at that for the loss of the Supreme court was Kerala's gain," AG Kurup said..The AG was speaking at the full court reference organised in honour of the Chief Justice who is set to demit office on April 24. However, since the same falls during the High Court's upcoming vacation, the farewell event was held today. .In his address, AG Kurup also went through the achievements of Justice Manikumar ever since he was sworn in as Chief Justice of the Kerala High Court in 2019.He was especially appreciative of the leadership the Chief Justice exhibited, and his support for various e-initiatives during the covid-19 pandemic, locdowns, and restrictions that commenced only a few months after he took office."The challenges of conducting courts through covid times were first met through virtual hearing with the aid of proprietary video telephonic software programs. Then a unique court management system, the first of its kind in this country, was developed. This CMS caters to the entire process from e filing to issuance of certified copies. Your lordship certainly can demit office with the satisfaction of having led the greatest revolutionary change in the history of this honourable court. Your lordship revolutionised the functioning of the district judiciary also by taking e-initiatives there," AG Kurup said..Justice SV Bhatti and advocate S Biju, President of the Kerala High Court Advocates' Association also highlighted the CJ's achievements in their respective speeches.Justice Bhatti also added that the module adopted by the Kerala High Court under the leadership of Chief Justice Manikumar is now being replicated in other High Courts."History is replete with replication of the module of the Kerala HC by a few other HCs and the credit goes to your lordship. It is worthwhile to place on record India Justice Report 2022. The report acknowledges that Kerala HC tops the chart in the case clearance rate at 156% as against the all India average of 95%", Justice Bhatti said..In his final address in the Chief Justice's Court of the Kerala High Court, Chief Justice Manikumar spoke with pride about the achievements in terms of adopting technology to aid in the justice dispensation process, and thanked those responsible for the same."The Honorable judges of the computerisation committee, the IT team, the then Registrar of computerisation, with the active cooperation of the Bar, staff members of the high Court, and members of the advocate clerks' association, showed the nation that Judiciary of Kerala can be a role model for other HCs", he said.Even though the path towards digitising the court processes was not one without protest from the KHCAA, Kerala Advocate Clerk's Association, and the Bar Council of Kerala, the Chief Justice adopted a charitable approach and thanked them for being an integral part to iron out issues in the new systems. "When e-filing was introduced, the advocates association particularly their IT team taking note of the difficulties faced by lawyers, clerks and litigants, gave their valuable suggestions with all humility, i would say, to enable us to correct our mistakes. The advocates in Kerala are known for their fairness, openness and reasonableness and in my view, they are also fearless in putting forth their viewpoint," he said.After thanking fellow judges, law officers, members of the Bar, Registry officials, High Court staff members, court officers, and members of his personal staff by name, he expressed his gratitude to his wife, his children and to his father, retired judge of the Madras High Court, Justice Swamidurai. .[Read our live coverage of the event here]