Incumbent upon judges to exercise discretion in observations President
New Delhi Nov 27 PTI President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday said it is incumbent upon the judges to exercise utmost discretion in their utterances in the courtrooms as indiscreet remarks even if made with good intentions give space for dubious interpretations to run down the judiciaryAddressing the valedictory function of the two-day Constitution Day celebrations organised by the Supreme Court Kovind said in Indian tradition judges are imagined as a model of rectitude and detachment more akin to sthitpragya a person of steady wisdomChief Justice of India CJI NV Ramana in his address said the legislature does not conduct studies or assess the impact of the laws that it passes which sometimes leads to big issues and result in over-burdening of cases on the judiciaryUnion Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said one cannot be in a situation where it becomes difficult to implement the laws passed by the legislature and the verdicts delivered by the judiciaryThe president said We have a rich history of legions of such judges known for their utterances full of sagacity and conduct beyond reproach which have become hallmarks for the future generations He said he is happy to note that the Indian judiciary has been adhering to those highest standardsThere is no doubt that you have set for yourself a high bar Hence it is also incumbent upon the judges to exercise utmost discretion in the utterances in courtrooms Indiscreet remarks even if made with good intentions give space for dubious interpretations to run down the judiciary Kovind saidThe president who was speaking in the presence of the CJI the Union law minister and other judges said in peoples view the judiciary is the most trusted institutionHe also expressed anguish at the remarks made against judges on social media platformsIt pains me to no end therefore to note that of late there have been cases of some disparaging remarks against the judiciary made on social media platforms These platforms have worked wonderfully to democratise information yet they have a dark side too The anonymity granted by them is exploited by some miscreants I hope this is an aberration and it will be short-lived Kovind saidThe president spoke about pendency of cases and appointment of judges and made it clear that he is of the firm view that the independence of the judiciary is non-negotiableHe however asked Without diluting it to the slightest degree can a better way be found to select judges for the higher judiciary For instance there can be an all-India judicial service which can select nurture and promote the right talent right from the lower levels to the higher levels Kovind saidThe CJI said simply re-branding the existing courts as commercial courts without creating a special infrastructure will not have any impact on the pendency of casesAnother issue is that the legislature does not conduct studies or assess the impact of the laws that it passes This sometimes leads to big issues The introduction of section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act is an example of this Now the already-burdened magistrates are further burdened by thousands of these cases Similarly re-branding the existing courts as commercial courts without creating a special infrastructure will not have any impact on the pendency he saidSection 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act deals with dishonour of cheques for insufficiency of funds in bank accountsThe CJI lauded the announcement of the law minister that the government has allocated Rs 9000 crore a substantial amount for the development of judicial infrastructureRijiju said at times in a bid to seek their rights people forget about the rights of others as well as their own duties adding that there is a need to find a balance between fundamental rights and fundamental dutiesHe noted that the bills passed by Parliament and the state legislatures and the verdicts delivered by the Supreme Court are the laws of the landAisi naubat hum kaise dekh sakte hain ki Supreme Court ya high court Assembly ya Parliament kanoon parit kar de phir bhi laagu karne mein agar musibat hota hai toh hum sab ko sochna hoga We cannot be in a situation where it becomes difficult to implement laws despite being passed by the Supreme Court and the high courts or a state Assembly and Parliament We all have to ponder over it the Union law minister saidLegislature judiciary executive all sections of the society have to think as the country is run as per the Constitution he added PTI ABS NAB MNL RC
New Delhi Nov 27 PTI President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday said it is incumbent upon the judges to exercise utmost discretion in their utterances in the courtrooms as indiscreet remarks even if made with good intentions give space for dubious interpretations to run down the judiciaryAddressing the valedictory function of the two-day Constitution Day celebrations organised by the Supreme Court Kovind said in Indian tradition judges are imagined as a model of rectitude and detachment more akin to sthitpragya a person of steady wisdomChief Justice of India CJI NV Ramana in his address said the legislature does not conduct studies or assess the impact of the laws that it passes which sometimes leads to big issues and result in over-burdening of cases on the judiciaryUnion Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said one cannot be in a situation where it becomes difficult to implement the laws passed by the legislature and the verdicts delivered by the judiciaryThe president said We have a rich history of legions of such judges known for their utterances full of sagacity and conduct beyond reproach which have become hallmarks for the future generations He said he is happy to note that the Indian judiciary has been adhering to those highest standardsThere is no doubt that you have set for yourself a high bar Hence it is also incumbent upon the judges to exercise utmost discretion in the utterances in courtrooms Indiscreet remarks even if made with good intentions give space for dubious interpretations to run down the judiciary Kovind saidThe president who was speaking in the presence of the CJI the Union law minister and other judges said in peoples view the judiciary is the most trusted institutionHe also expressed anguish at the remarks made against judges on social media platformsIt pains me to no end therefore to note that of late there have been cases of some disparaging remarks against the judiciary made on social media platforms These platforms have worked wonderfully to democratise information yet they have a dark side too The anonymity granted by them is exploited by some miscreants I hope this is an aberration and it will be short-lived Kovind saidThe president spoke about pendency of cases and appointment of judges and made it clear that he is of the firm view that the independence of the judiciary is non-negotiableHe however asked Without diluting it to the slightest degree can a better way be found to select judges for the higher judiciary For instance there can be an all-India judicial service which can select nurture and promote the right talent right from the lower levels to the higher levels Kovind saidThe CJI said simply re-branding the existing courts as commercial courts without creating a special infrastructure will not have any impact on the pendency of casesAnother issue is that the legislature does not conduct studies or assess the impact of the laws that it passes This sometimes leads to big issues The introduction of section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act is an example of this Now the already-burdened magistrates are further burdened by thousands of these cases Similarly re-branding the existing courts as commercial courts without creating a special infrastructure will not have any impact on the pendency he saidSection 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act deals with dishonour of cheques for insufficiency of funds in bank accountsThe CJI lauded the announcement of the law minister that the government has allocated Rs 9000 crore a substantial amount for the development of judicial infrastructureRijiju said at times in a bid to seek their rights people forget about the rights of others as well as their own duties adding that there is a need to find a balance between fundamental rights and fundamental dutiesHe noted that the bills passed by Parliament and the state legislatures and the verdicts delivered by the Supreme Court are the laws of the landAisi naubat hum kaise dekh sakte hain ki Supreme Court ya high court Assembly ya Parliament kanoon parit kar de phir bhi laagu karne mein agar musibat hota hai toh hum sab ko sochna hoga We cannot be in a situation where it becomes difficult to implement laws despite being passed by the Supreme Court and the high courts or a state Assembly and Parliament We all have to ponder over it the Union law minister saidLegislature judiciary executive all sections of the society have to think as the country is run as per the Constitution he added PTI ABS NAB MNL RC
