Stating that brotherhood and fraternity were important factors that led to the development of a nation, Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud on Saturday said that infighting would stall the country’s progress.
Speaking at the inauguration of Regional and State level ‘Hamara Samvidhan Hamara Samman’ campaign in Bikaner, Rajasthan, the CJI said that people must realise the fact that the individuals who were ranked lower to them professionally or personally should be treated with dignity.
Hamara Samvidhan, an year-long campaign inaugurated by Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar in January this year, aimed at creating awareness among citizens about the Constitution and their legal rights and duties.
He highlighted the instances where a person senior in rank did not treat his junior with equal respect, for example, people did not respect their drivers or those engaging in the cleaning work, thinking that such people were doing small work, noted the CJI.
He mentioned the Supreme Court’s decision of 2023, in which the Apex Court changed the nomenclature of the post earlier called Jamadar after 75 years.
He explained that ‘Jamadars’ were those court employees, who opened the door of a judge’s car and pulled the chair in courtrooms for the judges to sit.
Stressing on the State’s role in making people aware about the Constitution and its values, the CJI said that the Constitution made people realise that all Indians were part of this huge republic, which gave equal importance to their fundamental rights and duties.
Lauding the Department of Justice and Union Minister of State (I/C) for the Ministry of Law & Justice, Arjun Ram Meghwal for the campaign, the CJI said that people must realise that when the Constitution talked about their rights, it also expected them to discharge their duties.
He referred to the duties like giving respect to the Constitution, promoting harmony, protecting the environment and developing a scientific temper.
He further talked about technology in courtrooms leading to the participation of more women lawyers, who were earlier left out due to the burden of domestic responsibilities.
He said the availability of video-conferencing has brought about a “social change” in the Supreme Court as women in large numbers have started arguing (cases).
He said it was easy for a man to pick up his bag and go to his chambers, but a woman was not just a lawyer, she was also a mother, a daughter-in-law or a sister. The video conferencing has ensured that a woman’s time was not wasted in the courtroom, he added.
The CJI also stressed on the importance of writing judgments in simple language to make people feel more connected to the court and the court procedures.
He said as a CJI, it was his duty to ensure that justice reached the last mile and that everyone had access to justice.