MADURAI: One would be highly mistaken if he believes the impact of the judgments coming out of the Madras High Court and its Madurai Bench are limited to Tamil Nadu, Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud said, while addressing a gathering during the 20th anniversary of the setting up of Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Saturday.
“Madurai Bench is a catalyst for positive social change in the state through its judgments on trans persons’ rights and recognising the rights of transgender people to get married. The cases that come before the courts reflect the social milieu and contemporary issues faced by society and also reflect how judges react to such issues. The bench strives to reduce pendency, minimise delays and ensure that every litigant receives a fair hearing, irrespective of social or economic status,” he said.
He further said the Madurai Bench has the distinction of being the first high court campus in the south to instal the ‘Justice Clock’, which is a reminder that every minute a judge sits away from the bench is a minute when cases are added to the backlog.
Lauding the Bench for its latest “remarkable feat”, Justice Chandrachud said the Delhi High Court had set up a Disaster Recovery Centre at Madurai Bench this year to ensure regular backup of its data and software. “So, Delhi has to look towards Tamil Nadu for a solution if it faces problems,” Justice Chandrachud said in a lighter vein.
Referring to the CrwodStrike-Microsoft outage, which affected businesses globally, the CJI said dependence on technology has its own drawbacks.
He said that the senior members of the bar must promote talent and help junior lawyers by giving them a dignified amount to sustain themselves “Of course they come to learn, but also they come to teach us. Every day when I interact with my law clerks, I learn so much more than I share with them,” he said.
He mentioned that the Madurai Bench in the last 20 years has made that transition into truly being the representative of the Madras High Court.
The development of the bar in Madurai and the increasing stake that the lawyers from Madurai in assuming judicial offices in higher excellences of the judiciary in the state reflects the transition that is essential for a bar.
Justices of Supreme Court BR Gavai, Surya Kant, MM Sundresh, KV Viswanathan, R Mahadevan and Acting Chief Justice of Madras High Court D Krishnakumar, Justices R Suresh Kumar, SS Sundar and R Subramanian and other justices of the Madras High Court, Advocate General of Tamil Nadu PS Raman, Additional Solicitor General of India ARL Sundaresan and others were present on the occasion.
Later, work on the establishment of 200 e-seva kendras in north and southern districts was also initiated.