Want to be a free person untrammelled by duties of judicial office: Justice V Ramasubramanian on post-retirement plans

On his last day as a Supreme Court judge, Justice V Ramasubramanian made a light-hearted remark on how his farewell was different from typical farewells of judges. .The judge was sitting on a ceremonial bench with Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud and Justice PS Narasimha on Friday.He mentioned the usual occurrence of a retiring judge's farewell, where either the judge or one of the speakers sheds a tear. He light-heartedly joked about his inability to shed tears due to his perpetual state of happiness."Normally, a farewell is marked either by the retiring judge shedding tears or one of the speakers shedding tears. I am not capable of shedding tears because I always permeate happiness. The result is that none of you will also shed tears on my departure," he said..CJI Chandrachud highlighted Justice Ramasubramanian's dedication to his judicial duties, as well as his pursuits in Sanskrit and Tamil."I wonder if there is anything left to read for him," he added.He disclosed that he requested Justice Ramasubramanian to assume the position of a tribunal chairman whenever a vacancy arose. However, Justice Ramasubramanian conveyed his desire to remain a free person untrammelled by the duties of a judicial office.The CJI, however, expressed his hope that the retiring judge would consider his appeal."I hope he accepts the appeal of his Chief Justice. He has an innate ability to separate grain from chaff," he said..Attorney General (AG) for India R Venkataramani remarked that almost four years at the Supreme Court was too short a period for Justice Ramasubramanian.He said that among the many remarkable things that the judge brought with him, one that stood out was his quality of being a humble human being.Finally, the AG said that the judge's scholarship and erudition would ensure that he will be a great asset to the nation..Solicitor General (SG) of India Tushar Mehta was also present for the ceremonial bench proceeding. He praised Justice Ramasubramanian's amiable nature and said that no lawyer felt hesitant to argue before him.He emphasized that the judge had both a sense of humour and common sense in abundance.The SG went on to point out that in Justice Ramasubramanian's court, the energy at 10:30 AM was the same as that at 4 PM, without a change even in the judge's smile..Justice Ramasubramanian enrolled as a member of the bar on February 16, 1983. He practiced for about 23 years before the Madras High Court. He was appointed as an additional judge of the Madras High Court on July 31, 2006 and as a permanent judge on November 9, 2009. He was transferred on his own request to the High Court of Judicature at Hyderabad with effect from April 27, 2016. After the bifurcation of the two states, he was retained as a judge of the Telangana High Court from January 1, 2019. He served as Chief Justice of Himachal Pradesh High Court from June 22, 2019, until he was appointed as a judge of the Supreme Court on September 23, 2019.