Chief Justice of India Uday Umesh Lalit has said that one should take every association one makes with people as a great opportunity to find out more about life, what it offers, and how to go about it.
Speaking during his felicitation programme organised by the High Court Bar Association at Nagpur Bench of Bombay High Court on Saturday, the CJI said that he will not make any promises over his tenure, but will ensure that he performs the job to the best of his ability, knowledge and belief.
The CJI became emotional while remembering those, who helped him in the course of his legal career.
Remembering the good old days, Justice Lalit said that he first entered a courtroom in Nagpur, when his father, then Justice Umesh Lalit, was presiding as additional judge in the High Court.
The CJI said he did not attend the swearing-in ceremony of his father in January, 1974 and never saw him working as judge, but when his term was about to expire. Around January 17, there were speculations that Justice Umesh Lalit will not remain a Judge of the High Court any more, he further said, adding that this was when he entered a courtroom for the first time.
“For the first time in my life, I saw lawyers in black robes, the hustle-bustle in corridors,” he revealed.
The CJI said it was his first exposure to the legal profession.
Expressing gratitude over the blessings and love he received from everyone around him, the CJI said it gave him strength to carry on.
The CJI quoted Rudyard Kipling, “It is not what you have covered, it is how you cover that.
He also expressed gratitude to his wife Amita Lalit for standing with him like a ‘Rock of Gibraltar’ all these years. He said his wife would understand what he wanted to say, even before he said a word.
“This is the kind of connection we have developed,” expressed the CJI.
The CJI said that he was fortunate to have come from a family of lawyers and to have the chain unbroken till today.
Speaking about the family tradition, he said his grandfather started as a lawyer in 1920 in a district of Solapur, adding that the chain has remained unbroken for the past 102 years.
He also revealed that when he will retire in November, both his earlier and next generation will be practicing in courts.