It is a crime to remain silent when there is a duty to speak, Justice MS Sonak said on Wednesday as he bid farewell to the Bombay High Court ahead of taking over as Chief Justice of the Jharkhand High Court..During a full court reference, Justice Sonak urged the Bar to act as the moral, spiritual and intellectual mentor of the judiciary. He said that while criticism of judges can be uncomfortable, it is essential for the health of the institution."Our institution, which we deeply love and respect, will not remember the insults or even the berating of our enemies. But it will be sad and difficult for our institution to forget and forgive the silence of the Bar, whose members are its legitimate guards and guardians," Justice Sonak stressed.He added that "it is a crime to remain silent when there is a duty to speak", while emphasising that the Bar's intervention is a responsibility owed by it to the institution as well as the Constitution..Justice Sonak described the Bar as the judge of the judges, not in a spirit of hostility, but of guardianship. "No judge can ever rise above the calibre of the Bar that produces him or her," he underscored, adding that a judge often reflects the Bar's study, research, courage and forthrightness.He cautioned that judges risk being ruined by praise rather than saved by criticism. "Praising judges for their mythical excellence is fine, we all like to hear that. But correcting the judge if he strays from the path of rectitude is infinitely better and critically crucial", he said..Born on November 28, 1964, Justice Sonak completed his schooling at Don Bosco High School, Panaji. He went on to obtain a BSc from Dhempe College of Arts & Science and an LL.B. from M S College of Law, Panaji, in First Class, besides a Portuguese language diploma from the Xavier Centre of Historical Research. He enrolled with the Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa in October 1988 and practised at the Panaji Bench of the Bombay High Court in civil, constitutional, labour and service, environmental, commercial, tax, company and public interest litigation matters. He also served as Additional Standing Counsel for the Union government and Special Counsel for the State and statutory corporations, before being elevated as an Additional Judge of the Bombay High Court on June 21, 2013. Justice Sonak also became the first person in Goa to register a 'living will' or advance medical directive, a document through which a person with deteriorating or terminal health can record a decision not to be kept in a vegetative state on life support if they later become incapable of expressing their wishes..Follow Bar and Bench channel on WhatsAppDownload the Bar and Bench Mobile app for instant access to the latest legal news.
