What does ‘independent judiciary’ mean? CJI Chandrachud explains

New Delhi, Jan 28 (PTI) Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud on Sunday said an independent judiciary does not merely mean its insulation from the executive and the legislature but also the independence of individual judges in performing their duties.

He was speaking while heading a ceremonial bench at the Supreme Court to commemorate the court's 75 years. The bench comprised judges of the court and those who attended its proceedings included lawyers and former apex court judges.

The Chief Justice of India (CJI) said that "the Constitution entrenches several institutional safeguards for an independent judiciary such as a fixed retirement age and a bar against the alteration of salary of judges after their appointment".

"However, these constitutional safeguards are not in themselves sufficient to ensure an independent judiciary. An independent judiciary does not merely mean the insulation of the institution from the executive and the legislature branches but also the independence of individual judges in the performance of their roles as judges," he said.

The art of judging must be free of social and political pressure, and from the inherent biases which human beings hold, CJI Chandrachud said.

"Efforts are being made from within the institution to educate and sensitise judges across courts to unlearn their subconscious attitudes inculcated by social conditioning on gender, disability, race, caste and sexuality," he said.

The CJI said that despite changes in the world, the principles highlighted during the inaugural sitting of this court on January 28, 1950, continue to remain relevant today to the functioning of an independent Supreme Court.

"This court has in the last 75 years faced old and new challenges in confronting the face of injustice and meeting the expectations of those at the receiving end of power. This court has through the course of many years charted its understanding of principles and developed innovative approaches to achieve the ideals of a democratic polity governed by the rule of law under a written Constitution," he said.

CJI Chandrachud added that January 28 marks a significant day in constitutional history as the inaugural sitting of the Supreme Court was held on this day 75 years ago.

"Six judges of the federal court led by Chief Justice Harilal J Kania assembled for the first sitting of the Supreme Court of India. The event took place without much fanfare in the Prince's Chamber of the building of Parliament from which the federal court functioned," he said.

He added that the chief justice's address at the inaugural sitting emphasised three principles which are necessary for the Supreme Court to function according to the constitutional mandate.

"The first is an independent judiciary where the Supreme Court must be independent of the legislature and the executive. The second is the judicial approach towards adjudication, which postulates that the Supreme Court must interpret the Constitution not as a rigid body of rules but as a living organism. The third principle is that this court must secure the respect of citizens for it to establish itself as a legitimate institution. The confidence of our citizens is determinative of our own legitimacy," he said.

CJI Chandrachud said that in its initial days, the Supreme Court sat in a bench of six judges. In 1950, 1,215 cases were instituted before the court and judgments were pronounced in 43 of those cases, he said.

"The Supreme Court now sits in a bench of two judges unless the case has been referred to a Constitution bench or a bench of three judges. Between January and October 2023, 45,495 cases were instituted and judgments were pronounced in more than a thousand cases," he said.

He added that the Supreme Court, as the highest appellate and constitutional court of the nation, derives but cannot rest its legitimacy solely on the Constitution. "The legitimacy of this court is also derived from the confidence of citizens that it is a neutral and impartial arbiter of disputes which would deliver timely justice," he said and added that the apex court has followed two approaches to enhance the faith in its justice delivery mechanism.

First, by not conferring permanence upon judicial decisions, this court is cognisant that the law is not constant but is ever-evolving and the space for disagreement is always open, CJI Chandrachud said.

"The second approach of the court to enhance faith in the justice delivery system has been to increase access to courts by diluting the procedural rules for the institution of cases. This court was opened up to citizens in every corner of the nation irrespective of their social and economic status. In 1985, 24,716 letter petitions were received in English, Hindi and other regional languages," he said.

"This number has since then undergone an exponential surge. In 2022, about 1,15,120 letter petitions were submitted to the Supreme Court, clearly indicating that the common person believes that they would be able to secure justice in these halls," the CJI said.

He said that in recent years, this court has taken a positive approach towards decreasing the pendency of cases, and in 2023, 49,818 cases were registered, 2,41,594 cases were listed for hearing, and 52,221 cases were disposed of, which is more than the number of cases registered.

The ceremonial bench sat after a function organised by the apex court on the occasion of the inauguration of the Diamond Jubilee Year of its establishment. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the chief guest for the function. PTI