Are judges under pressure? Not unless they acknowledge it, Justice Muralidhar in his farewell speech [Read Full Speech]

Dr Justice S Muralidhar today clarified that the Supreme Court Collegium’s decision on his transfer was communicated to him on February 17 and that he was "fine with moving" to the Punjab & Haryana High Court. .The Collegium had recommended the transfer of Justice Muralidhar in its meeting held on February 12..“In my case, the Collegium’s decision was communicated to me by the CJI on 17 February by a letter which sought my response. I acknowledged receipt of that letter. I was then asked to clarify what I meant. As I saw it, if I was going to be transferred from the Delhi High Court any way, I was fine with moving to the Punjab & Haryana High Court...I therefore clarified to the CJI that I did not object to the proposal. An explanation for my transfer reached the press via Maneesh Chibber’s article in The Print...quoting sources, confirming what had been indicated to me a couple of days earlier.”Justice Muralidhar.Collegium proposes transfer of Justice S Muralidhar from Delhi to Punjab and Haryana HC.Justice Muralidhar, who will take oath as a judge of the Punjab & Haryana High Court tomorrow, was speaking at the Full Court Reference organized by the Delhi High Court..Speaking on the events that transpired on the day his transfer was notified, Justice Muralidhar said, “...26th February 2020 was perhaps the longest working day of my life as a judge of this High Court. It began at 12.30 am with a sitting at my residence with Justice Bhambhani, under the orders of Justice Sistani to deal with a PIL filed by Rahul Roy seeking safe passage for ambulances carrying the injured riot victims. When I received a call at my residence from the lawyer for the petitioner, I first called Justice Sistani to ask what should be done, knowing that the Chief Justice was on leave. Justice Sistani explained that he too was officially on leave then...and that I should take up the matter...”.Breaking: Centre notifies transfer of Justice S Muralidhar to Punjab & Haryana High Court.He added, “Later that day, upon urgent mentioning, as the de facto CJ’s Bench, Justice Talwant Singh and I took up another PIL on the CJ’s Board seeking registration of FIRs for hate speech. After the orders passed on that day, the above two PILs remained on the CJ’s Board.".Justice Muralidhar remarked that the notification which was issued close to the midnight of February 26 did two things. ."First, it transferred me to the Punjab & Haryana High Court. Second, it appointed me to the position from where I can never be transferred, or removed and in which I shall always be proud to remain. A former Judge of arguably the best High Court in the country. The High Court of Delhi."Justice Muralidhar.The Full Court Reference which took place in the Chief Justice's Court was attended by all the sitting Judges of the High Court as well as its former Chief Justice, Justice AP Shah. Senior Advocates Shanti Bhushan, HS Phoolka, Proferssor Upendra Baxi, and family members of Justice Muralidhar were also present. .In his farewell speech, Justice Muralidhar fondly remembered his senior, former Attorney General G Ramaswamy, and Professor Lotika Sarkar..While thanking his family, support staff, and the law researchers present and past, Justice Muralidhar added, “There are judges in the audience and elsewhere in Delhi and India who have helped me in various ways in traversing the difficult path of judgeship...I find it hard to describe the unstinting affection I have received from you, old and young, senior and non-senior, over these 14 years. You may not know it, but you have patiently hand-held me, guided me across rough terrains, and encouraged me to stay the course. I cannot thank you enough.”.Speaking on the diversty which is reflected in the High Court's Bar and its Bench, Justice Muralidhar remarked, ."By and large, the class, community and caste factors have not been allowed to alter us...I dare hope, it never will. This is the promise we must make to ourselves. The key word here is fraternity...As Babasaheb Ambedkar put it, without fraternity, ‘equality and liberty would not be deeper than coats of paint'."Justice Muralidhar.Further stating that the act of judging takes place in a space which is both mediative and meditative, Justice Muralidhar explained, "The former is in the acknowledgement of the primary function of judging: dispute resolution. The latter i.e. the meditative space in the constitutional court adjudication has, at least for me, two guiding principles. The Gandhian Talisman of the weakest persona and Ambedkar’s adoption of Grote’s constitutional morality. If in this meditative judicial space, I allow my judicial instinct to be so guided, the result, I believe, would answer the Constitutional vision of justice.".Justice Muralidhar took the opportunity to also speak on the practice of addressing the Judges as "Lordships". ."I don’t subscribe to the view that the judges perform a divine function. To be jettisoning the prefix 'Lordship' and even 'Hon’ble' is not a fetish. It is an acknowledgment of how mortal and temporal, and I may venture to add, fallible, we are."Justice Muralidhar.Justice Muralidhar also sought to draw a distinction between neutrality and impartiality. .Stating that the two were not antithetical, Justice Muralidhar said, "Impartiality is non-compromisable for a judge. It is an essential attribute. On neutrality, the Constitution in my view requires the judge at all the levels to be able to discern the weak from the strong litigant in terms of their capacities to access justice and lean on the side of the vulnerable in order to attempt to achieve equality of arms.".To answer what kept him going, Justice Muralidhar remarked, "Those moments when I can bring to an end a two or three decade old case, get an 80-year old pensioner relief, long oversure retiral benefits to the legal representatives of a deceased bus conductor or wrongly dismissed CRPF jawan, reverse a wrong conviction or a wrong acquittal.".Recalling the Section 377 verdict passed in 2009, Justice Muralidhar said,."The most moving moment as a judge was in this very court sitting where I am today, when on July 2, 2009, Chief Justice AP Shah and I delivered our judgement in Naz Foundation. Even as we held that consensual same sex between adults in private was not a crime, the relief that swept through the courtroom amongst those waiting to hear the verdict was palpable. Many broke down right here in front of us. At that moment we knew that something irreversible had happened."Justice Muralidhar.During his address to the huge gathering of lawyers, junior and senior, Justice Muralidhar shared, ."Someone asked me not long ago: 'After nearly 14 years on the Bench things must be clearer, in black and white?' I found I could not agree. The colour that the judges of many years best identify with is grey. I am often asked, are judges under pressure? My answer to that is: Not unless they acknowledge it."Justice Muralidhar.The Full Court Reference ended with a standing ovation from the Bar as well as the Bench.