At a heartfelt felicitation and retirement ceremony organised by the Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa, former Supreme Court judge Justice Abhay Oka delivered a thought-provoking speech on judicial ethics, responsibilities and the grave challenges faced by India's judicial system.
Justice Abhay Oka said, "Once you take the oath of a judge, you should not think about future prospects even for a second. The moment you start thinking that way, you will not be able to work in accordance with your oath."
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He emphasised that judges must maintain utmost integrity by focusing only on their duties and not on their future roles or public reactions. He further said judges should not be influenced by what politicians or critics say about their judgments. "Never think about the implications of your judgments. Think only about whether the judgment you are delivering is within the four frames of the Constitution or not. Sometimes, your judgment may favour politicians, if it is within the four frames of the Constitution."
Justice Abhay Oka recalled his own humble beginnings, saying when he started practising law on June 28, 1983, he never thought he would become a Supreme Court judge.
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“I had the opportunity to work during my tenure in the Supreme Court. I believe whatever work you do as a judge is the purest work that you can do anywhere else.”
He also referred to an old case in which the then Prime Minister had offered the post of Chief Justice of India (CJI) to a judge bypassing the senior-most judge. That judge, Justice Mukherjee, showed principled conduct and declined the offer.
In his speech, Justice Abhay Oka referred to Justice HR Khanna, who had given the sole dissent in the ADM Jabalpur case during the Emergency. He told how Justice Khanna had told his wife a day before his judgment that he would never become the CJI, as he would have to face the consequences of standing up for the Constitution.
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“All this teaches us that judges should give judgments only on the basis of law, merit and should not pay attention to anything else.”
Justice Abhay Oka did not shy away from speaking on the judiciary’s current struggle with pending cases. He expressed grave concern over the 56 lakh cases pending in lower courts in Maharashtra, with Pune alone having 7.8 lakh cases, and the Bombay High Court having about 6.64 lakh cases, of which 50% are more than five years old.
At the national level, he said there are 84,872 cases pending in the Supreme Court.
“In 2002, the Supreme Court had said that 50 judges are required for every 10 lakh citizens, but now the number is 22. Lawyers should come together and ask governments to ensure that the ratio of judges to population becomes 50 again, otherwise people will keep criticising the judiciary.”
He also questioned why the Bombay High Court is functioning without its full sanctioned strength of 92 judges.
“The appointment of judges should be streamlined by the Supreme Court, otherwise the number of pending cases will increase further.”