CHENNAI: Emphasising the need for compassion in the administration of justice, the new Chief Justice of Madras High Court Manindra Mohan Shrivastava on Tuesday said he would ensure the court continues to remain the voice for the voiceless and the refuge for the oppressed and marginalised sections of society.
Addressing the welcome ceremony held in the court premises, he said his foremost duty is to “preserve and enhance the dignity and independence” of the court.
“The judiciary must remain ever alert not only to protect individual liberty but also to ensure access to justice is not an abstract Constitutional promise but a live reality for the people, especially the poor, the voiceless and the marginalised sections, " he stated.
He emphasised the “need for compassion in the administration of justice” and said the law in its abstract can sometimes seem distant, but when it touches lives it heals, empowers and restores. Law without justice is a wound without cure.
Stating that he would strive for maintaining judicial independence and ensuring the constitutional values and rule of law are upheld, the CJ promised to work in to enhance the dignity of the High Court and strive to make the judicial process more efficient, transparent and more accessible to the common man.
The CJ further stated the High Court will continue to be the refuge for the oppressed, voice for the voiceless and a watchdog of Constitutional morality.
Saying that the advocates serve as vital champions upholding the principles of fairness, equality and fair play, and as the voice of the voiceless in the pursuit of justice, he noted that the Bar and the Bench are the two wheels of the same chariot involved in dispensation of justice and they cannot move smoothly without the cooperation of each other.
Justice Shrivastava said the judiciary is revered not for the complexities of its procedures but for its moral courage to confront and correct injustice.
“It is not merely a forearm of law but a sanctuary of fairness where the voice of the unheard is amplified and the burden of the vulnerable is shared. This noble role compels us to look beyond rigid technicalities and to dispense justice with a human touch, and that is with empathy, wisdom and conscience,” he told the gathering.
Advocate General PS Raman, chairman of Bar Council of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry PS Amalraj- and president of Madras Bar Association (MBA) M Baskar addressed the event welcoming the Chief Justice.