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Tag: CJI

  • SC is not Supreme Court of Tilak Marg, it is apex court of India, by India, for India: CJI

    SC is not Supreme Court of Tilak Marg, it is apex court of India, by India, for India: CJI

    Amid a demand to set up benches of Orissa High Court in southern and western parts of the state, Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud on Saturday said technology has obliterated the need for benches of the High Court because there is a bench in each district that has a virtual court.

    With several high courts having started livestreaming proceedings, the CJI said this has a flip side, too. “We judges need to be trained ourselves, because we are now working in the age of social media,” he said. “Every word we say in the court is up in the public realm.”

    CJI Chandrachud, who was speaking at the National Conference on Digitization, Paperless Courts and e-Initiatives at the Odisha Judicial Academy in Cuttack, said: “Every word which we judges say in court is up in the public realm in the age of social media. This places new demands on us as judges.”

    He hailed Orissa HC’s efforts to set up virtual courts in 20 of the state’s 30 districts, where lawyers can address the HC from their districts. Setting up virtual courts across districts has enabled Orissa HC to be “truly the representative of the entire state” and ensure that there is access to justice for citizens across the state who want access to the high court, he said.

    The CJI said: “The Supreme Court of India is not the Supreme Court of Tilak Marg but it’s the Supreme Court for India… of India… by India. Likewise, each high court is not really a high court for the metropolitan capital of the state.”

    CJI Chandrachud said the vision of the e-court project is to provide an affordable, accessible, cost-effective, environmentally sustainable, transparent and accountable justice delivery system. He said each of these phrases “signifies the core of our mission of reaching out to the citizens, of replacing what was the earlier colonial model of administration of justice, under which citizens had to reach out to the court. We seek to now replace it with a model…to reach out to the citizens.”

    On cybersecurity, the CJI said he has constituted a committee to ensure data security and data privacy. He said they are in the process of evolving a national model for data security and privacy which would be a major step.

  • Group Of Over 400 Parents Of LGBTQIA++ Writes To CJI, Seeks Marriage Equality For Their Children

    Group Of Over 400 Parents Of LGBTQIA++ Writes To CJI, Seeks Marriage Equality For Their Children

    A group of over 400 parents has written to Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud, heading a bench hearing the pleas seeking legal sanction for same-sex marriage, urging that their LGBTQIA++ wards be granted the right to “marriage equality”.

    The letter by ‘Sweekar-The Rainbow Parents’ assumes significance it comes when a five-judge constitution bench headed by the CJI is hearing a batch of petitions seeking legal validation for same-sex marriage for the fourth day.

    “We desire to see our children and children-in-law find final legal acceptance for their relationship under the Special Marriage Act in our country. We are certain that a nation as big as ours which respects its diversity and stands for the value of exclusion, will open its legal gate of marriage equality to our children too.

    “We are growing old. Some of us will touch 80 soon, we hope that we will get to see the legal stamp on the rainbow marriage of our children in our lifetime,” the group said in its letter.

    ‘Sweekar-The Rainbow Parents’ is a group formed by the parents of Indian LGBTQIA++ ((lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, intersex, pansexual, two-spirit, asexual, and ally) wards with the aim of supporting each other to accept one’s child fully and be happy as a family.

    “We are appealing to you to consider marriage equality,” the letter said.

    It said from knowing about gender and sexuality, to understanding the lives of our children, to finally accepting their sexuality and their loved ones- the parents have gone through the whole “gamut of emotions”..

    “We empathise with those who are opposing marriage equality, because some of us were there too. It took us education, debate and patience with our LIGTQIA++ children to realise that their lives, their feelings and their desires are valid. Similarly, we hope that those who oppose marriage equality will come around too. We have faith in the people of India, the Constitution and the democracy of our nation,” it said.

    It referred to the apex court judgement of 2018 by which it decriminalised consensual gay sex.

    The judgement ensured LGBTQIA++ people are treated with dignity and acceptance.

    “Society is a changing and evolving phenomenon. Just as a rising tide lifts all boats, the judgement by the Supreme Court created a ripple effect on society and has helped,” it said.

  • SC pulls up Mumbai Metro for bid to fell additional trees in Aarey

    SC pulls up Mumbai Metro for bid to fell additional trees in Aarey

    The Supreme Court on Monday came down heavily on the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Limited (MMRCL) for its attempt at felling more than the ordered limit of 84 trees for the Mumbai Metro Rail project in Aarey

    A bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud, Justices PS Narasimha and JB Pardiwala found it necessary to penalise MMRCL for its conduct and directed it to deposit ₹10 lakh with the Chief Conservator of Forests.

    “MMRCL shall deposit 10 lakhs to the Chief Conservator of Forests and the conservator should ensure all afforestation as directed is completed. The conservator shall ensure that planting of trees direction is followed,” the court ordered.

    The order was passed after MMRCL sought permission to fell 185 tress instead of 84, as previously allowed by the bench.

    The bench was miffed at the fact that superintendent of gardens and trees officer had granted permission to fell 177 trees in violation of the top court’s order.

    “You people think you can Supreme Court for a ride. You cannot overreach the court. Officer of MMRCL should also be sent to jail. Ask CEO of MMRCL to be present in court,” the CJI siad.

    The Court further remarked that both the MMRCL and Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) were in contempt of the court.

    During the hearing Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta stated that while there was lacuna on the authorities’ part, it was bona fide and there was no intention to override the court.

    On the court’s suggestion of a monetary penalty, the SG urged the court to reconsider.

    “We should have come before this court and there is lacuna but there was no attempt to overreach this court. I urge this finding not to be recorded.. instead of monetary penalty… reforestation of 3,000 trees can be directed.. this can serve a larger cause”, he said.

    Senior Advocate Gopal Sankarnarayanan, however, said that complete fraud had been played on the court.

    “I am appearing for Van Shakti.. what is happening here is incremental.. it is based on complete falsehood.. they said earlier no survey so they did not know how many trees”, Senior Advocate CU Singh added.

    The Court was hearing a suo motu plea against construction of a metro car shed under the Mumbai Metro Rail project, at the Aarey area, which is one of Mumbai’s major green lungs.

    On October 7, 2019, the Court had ordered the State of Maharashtra not to cut any further trees at Aarey, and to maintain the status quo.

    Nonetheless, in November 2022, the court had allowed the MMRCL to pursue its February 2019 application seeking permission to fell 84 trees reasoning that this was required for a shunting site/ramp, without which the overall metro project would have no consequence.

    The MMRCL, however, applied to fell 185 trees.

    After the superintendent of gardens and trees officer granted permission to fell 177 trees and transplant 53 trees subject to the condition that 1,533 trees will be re-planted, a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) petition was filed in the Bombay High Court.

    The High Court took note of the top court’s order regarding on 84 trees and ordered that no tree shall be felled until a clarification was sought from the court.

    The matter then reached apex court by way of the present application.

  • President, PM, CJI to attend 75th year celebrations of Gauhati High Court

    President, PM, CJI to attend 75th year celebrations of Gauhati High Court

    Guwahati (IANS) | President Draupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud will participate in a series of events to be organized as part of the platinum jubilee of the Gauhati High Court. Union Law and Justice Minister Kiren Rijiju, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Gauhati High Court Chief Justice Sandeep Mehta will attend a meeting on the occasion on Wednesday.

    President Murmu and CJI Chandrachud will attend the ceremony on April 7, while the Prime Minister will attend the closing ceremony on April 14.

    The High Court will honor senior advocates who have completed 50 years of legal practice. A commemorative postage stamp and the Assamese edition of the book titled ‘Gauhati High Court: History and Heritage’ as well as a special edition of the magazine ‘Atman’ will also be released on the occasion.

    Gauhati High Court was established on 5th April, 1948. Prior to the establishment of separate full-fledged High Courts in Tripura, Meghalaya and Manipur in March 2013, all the northeastern states except Sikkim were under it.

    –IANS