JUSTICE FOR THE JUDGE: AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY by Ranjan Gogoi

Author:Ranjan Gogoi [Gogoi, Ranjan]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Rupa Publications
Published: 2021-12-07T18:30:00+00:00

LORD GANESHA BRINGS CHEER

On 13 September 2018, coinciding with Ganesh Chaturthi, the warrant signed by the president of India appointing me as the CJI with effect from the due date was brought to my residence at 10, Tees January Marg by the representative of the Department of Justice in the Ministry of Law and Justice. Immediately after the gentleman left, I handed over the warrant to Rupanjali to read. The children were informed and so was my mother who was in Dibrugarh. I had become the Chief Justice-designate. They were, of course, very happy. But I got the impression that they had not felt it would be otherwise.

The warrant of appointment of the CJI is issued well in time to enable the CJI-designate to familiarize himself with all matters concerning the Supreme Court and its administration. Once the CJI-designate is appointed, as a matter of convention, the outgoing CJI attends only to routine matters. In the event the outgoing CJI is required to take any major decision or one regarding a matter of policy, he is expected to do so in consultation with the CJI-designate. These are all healthy practices that have been established over a long period.

On and from the day the warrant of appointment was received, work started in the Registry of the Supreme Court and my home office for the oath-taking ceremony on 3 October. On being queried, I had indicated to the president’s Secretariat that, subject to the convenience of the president, 10.45 a.m. would be a suitable time for administering of the oath. The Supreme Court Registry was informed by Rashtrapati Bhavan that about 250 personal guests could be invited by the CJI-designate for the oath-taking ceremony. Friends, acquaintances and members of the extended family came all the way from Assam. Similarly, people I had known, particularly the PGI doctors in Chandigarh as well as the doctors in Delhi who had so kindly looked after me were invited. They all came. There were lawyers and a few persons from Assam living in Delhi who were present. My court staff and my office staff, some with their families, also participated in the event.

The official gathering on the occasion was impressive, as usual. The vice president, the prime minister (PM), cabinet ministers, the leader of the opposition and former PMs attended. Except for the customary namastes, there was no interaction with any of the dignitaries. There could have been none, given the clockwork precision with which the dignitaries, in order of precedence, entered the Durbar Hall.

Exactly a minute before the scheduled time, President Ram Nath Kovind arrived and at 10.45 a.m. administered the oath of office to me. In less than a minute I had become the 46th CJI. I had no idea that it would be as tumultuous as it turned out to be. Until then life had been relatively simple; I had not heard of or had any occasion to read Live Law and Bar and Bench, etc. I had little knowledge of what was

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