New Delhi: Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant has made it clear said that it would be wrong for anyone to assume that he could be browbeaten by commentary about court proceedings, adding that he is a very tough person.
The CJI made this observation while hearing a prayer by former Karnataka MP Prajwal Revanna’s to transfer his sexual assault trial out of the Special MP/MLA Court in Bengaluru. The Supreme Court bench of CJI Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi dismissed the plea and held that allegations of bias against the presiding judge of the trial court were unfounded.
The remarks of the trial judge in the earlier conviction order could not justify a finding of bias, the Court held.
CJI Kant then said that commenting on matters pending before the court and misinterpreting the questions posed by judges during hearings are a “concerted attempt” by “hyper-sensitive people” to dissuade judges from asking tough questions to get the best out of lawyers.
Judicial queries are meant to test the arguments weightage from both parties and in no way represents court’s final view, the CJI observed. People were quick to jump to conclusions and weave narratives about the court proceedings based on some queries which have been raised during the hearing, he noted.
CJI Kant’s remarks came after Revanna’s lawyers argued that various comments made by the trial judge created an apprehension of bias against him. He reiterated that mere observations from the bench cannot indicate a pre-determined mind and rejected the petition.
Recently, a group of retired judges, advocates and activists had written an open letter to the CJI on comments made by the Court during a hearing related to the Rohingya issue.
The CJI’s bench, while Supreme while reacting to a habeas corpus plea filed in relation to Rohingyas had asked earlier if the government of India has issued an order declaring Rohingyas as ‘refugees’ and if India should give a “red carpet welcome” to illegal migrants.
“Do you want us to roll out a red carpet for them,” the CJI had asked in that matter and noted: “They enter through tunnels and demand rights like food and shelter.”
The signatories of the open letter has claimed that the CJI’s remark on Rohingyas were “contrary to core constitutional values”. In response to this open letter, at least 44 retired judges came in support of the CJI and termed it a “motivated campaign” to malign the court.
