Delhi High Court judges reflect on loneliness in litigation at Women Lawyers Forum literary event

Delhi High Court judges Justices Neena Bansal Krishna and Amit Bansal on Friday commented on the loneliness some lawyers may face in the course of their careers, while taking part in the third event organised by the Delhi High Court Women Lawyers Forum's literary club.

Justice Krishna urged advocates to support one another to stave off loneliness. 

“Regarding the issue of loneliness highlighted in this huge crowd, some of us do get lonely. Keep an eye - if somebody is being left out. Just reach out to them. They may not be able to come up,” she stated. 

She mentioned the Shahrukh Khan-starrer movie Dear Zindagi, while commenting that the taboo around mental health is fading. The judge also lauded the forum members and women lawyers practicing before the High Court.

“There was a time when lady lawyers were there for taking adjournments. Now they can give any lawyer a run for their money. We had to work a little more, but I think we are now mainstream,” she observed. 

Justice Amit Bansal observed that loneliness has an invisible presence in our lives.

“We are all the time attached to social media. On the face of it, you are socialising, interacting so much, but still, there is this invisible presence of loneliness, more particularly when you look at the legal profession,” he said. 

He went on to note that the legal profession strenuous, which makes it important to find ways to de-stress and relax.

“This is a profession where you have long hours of working. It is an adversarial system where you'll be attacking your opponent in court. It's extremely competitive and demands that your individual intellectual rigours are involved. Look for solutions, invest in relationships, digital detox and focus on lifestyle,” he suggested. 

He spoke about the importance of building a support system in the profession. He reminisced about his litigation days, of sitting in the court canteen and speaking to other advocates. 

“I was a lawyer in this court for 25 years and thought that it is important to have support systems in place. You sit in different groups at the canteen. I was very lucky to have a great lunch group with whom I had lunch every single day, which was a great support system in personal and professional life,” he said. 

Justice Bansal went on to highlight that it is important to create a work-life balance.

“For instance, I go for a walk in the morning. It is my time with myself. I never walk with anyone. I always walk alone, because that's the time I gather my thoughts…Also, I make it a point every day before I go to bed to wait for 15 to 20 minutes. And I find it very relaxing. It helps me sleep,” he told the gathering.

The two judges had been invited to discuss two books, namely ‘How Gourango lost his O’ written by Senior Advocate Sanjoy Ghose and the book ‘Alone in the Crowd’ authored by clinical psychologist Dr. Kamna Chhibber. 

The authors of the two books discussed at the event spoke about their books. There was a stand-up comedy sketch as well by Advocate Abiha Zaidi.

President of the Delhi High Court Bar Association N Hariharan also gave an address.

The coordinators of the event were Senior Advocate Nandita Rao and Advocates Kajal Chandra, Shweta Kapoor, Naomi Chandra and Sonia Madan.