NEW DELHI: Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant said on Monday that the Supreme Court has entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the apex court of Bhutan to facilitate the exchange of young legal professionals. Following this, he welcomed two law clerks from Bhutan who will work at the Supreme Court.
The CJI, at the outset of the proceedings on Monday, said that under the MoU, two law clerks from Bhutan would be engaged by the Supreme Court here for a period of three months. They would receive the same honorarium as Indian law clerks do, and their travel expenses would be borne by the Supreme Court, the CJI said.
Introducing the law clerks to the packed courtroom, the CJI described them as “young and bright” and said that they would be assigned to work in different courts during their tenure.
In October last year, the then CJI B R Gavai had visited Bhutan and met King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, high-ranking judicial, and other officials. It was during this visit that both countries had agreed to enter into a judicial understanding, which was a part of the larger arrangement of deepening ties between the two countries.
India had agreed to extend cooperation to the Bhutan’s judiciary in the areas of technology integration, capacity building, and knowledge exchange during Gavai’s visit. The two annual positions for the Bhutanese law graduates were announced then.
The Supreme Court has entered into cooperation with other neighbouring countries as well, including Nepal and Sri Lanka. Justice Kant, before he was elevated as the chief justice, had visited Sri Lanka in October last year for a similar exercise and engaged with Sri Lankan judicial officers about handling human rights cases and protecting minority rights.
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