New Delhi, Dec 25 (IANS) The Chief Justice of India (CJI), D.Y. Chandrachud, on Monday paid tributes to four army personnel who were killed after terrorists ambushed two army vehicles in J&K's Poonch district last week.

Speaking at the Christmas celebrations organised by the Supreme Court Bar Association, Chandrachud said, “We will give up everything, even if it comes to our lives as so many people in our armed forces do in the service of the nation.

"We lost four of our members of the armed forces two days ago. So, just as we celebrate Christmas, let us not forget about those who are on the borders giving up their lives to protect our nation. When we sing, we also sing for them in celebration."

The CJI, who was present with other judges of the apex court, sang Christmas carols on the occasion.

On December 21, two vehicles of the army, including a Gypsy and a truck, came under terrorist fire in the Dera Ki Gali area in Poonch’s Bafliaz, in which at least four soldiers were killed and two others were injured.

New Delhi, Sep 23 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said the legal fraternity plays a key role in the building of any country, adding that the judiciary and bar have long been protectors of India's justice system.

He was inaugurating the 'International Lawyers Conference' here.  

The Women’s Reservation Bill that was passed in Parliament two days ago will give women-led development a new direction, energy.

Addressing the conference here, Modi said, 'The International Lawyers' Conference 2023 has become a symbol of the spirit of 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’.

He welcomed the foreign dignitaries to India and also thanked the Bar Association of India for taking the lead in organising the programme.

Emphasising the role of the legal fraternity in the development of any country, Modi said, "For years, the judiciary and the bar have been the guardians of India's judicial system."

He also highlighted the role of legal professionals in the freedom struggle and cited examples of Mahatma Gandhi, Baba Saheb Ambedkar, Babu Rajendra Prasad, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Lokmanya Tilak and Veer Savarkar.

"Experience of the legal profession has worked to strengthen the foundation of independent India and today’s impartial judicial system has also helped in bolstering the confidence of the world in India," he said.

The Prime Minister underlined that the conference is taking place at a time when the nation has been a witness to several historic decisions and recalled the passage of Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha which entitles a 33 per cent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha.

He also mentioned that the world got a glimpse of India’s democracy, demography and diplomacy at the recently concluded G20 Summit in New Delhi.

"On this day, a month ago, India became the first nation in the world to successfully land Chandrayaan-3 on the south pole of the moon," the Prime Minister recalled.

He emphasised that the India of today which is brimming with self-confidence is working to realise the goal of a 'Viksit Bharat' by 2047 and expressed the need for strong, independent and unbiased foundations for the legal system in India to achieve the goal of a developed nation.

He expressed confidence that the International Lawyers’ Conference 2023 will turn out to be extremely successful and each country will get an opportunity to learn from the best practices of other nations.

Modi elaborated on the deep connectedness of today’s world. 

He said that there are many forces in the world today that do not care about the borders and jurisdiction.

"When dangers are global, ways to deal with them should also be global", he said. He touched upon cyber terrorism, money laundering, and possibilities of misuse of artificial intelligence and said that preparing a global framework on such issues goes beyond just government matters but calls for connectedness among the legal framework of different countries,” the Prime Minister said.

Speaking on Alternate Dispute Resolution, the Prime Minister said that with the increasing complexity of commercial transactions, ADR has gained currency all over the world.

He said that in order to systematise the informal tradition of dispute resolution in India, the Government of India has enacted a mediation Act.

Similarly, Lok Adalats are also playing a big role and Lok Adalats have solved about 7 lakh cases in the last six years.

The Prime Minister mentioned the simplicity of language and law and said that ongoing discussion regarding presenting any law in two languages - one to which the legal system is accustomed and another for common citizens.

"Citizens should feel that the law belongs to them," Modi stressed as he underlined that the government is making an effort to draft new laws in simple language and gave the example of the Data Protection Law. 

He also congratulated the Supreme Court for making arrangements to get its judgments translated into four local languages -- Hindi, Tamil, Gujarati and Oriya and hailed the monumental change in the judicial system of India.

Bhubaneswar, May 5 (IANS) Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud visited Jagannath temple in Odisha's Puri on Friday.

The CJI, who arrived here on a two-day visit to Odisha, directly went to Puri from the Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) to have darshan of Lord Jagannath.

Odisha Chief Secretary Pradeep Kumar Jena, Chief administrator of Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) Ranjan Kumar Das and puri district administration have given him a rousing welcome at the pilgrim town.

"Chief Justice Chandrachud had visited the temple earlier when he was a judge. This is his first visit after assuming charge as Chief Justice of India. He became emotional while paying obeisance at Lord Jagannath," said Madhusudan Singhari, a senior servitor of the temple.

The Chief Justice had darshan of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra at the main temple. He also went to the temples of Devi Bimala and Laxmi besides other deities on the premises, said Singhari.

Chief Justice Chandrachud is scheduled to attend a national conference on 'Digitisation, Paperless Courts and e-initiatives' at Odisha Judicial Academy in Cuttack on Saturday.

New Delhi, April 24 (IANS) Chief Justice of India (CJI) D.Y. Chandrachud on Monday said that judges have no business giving interviews to news channels on matters pending before them.

A bench comprising the CJI and Justice P.S. Narasimha took strong exception to sitting Calcutta High Court judge Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay's interview to a news channel in connection with Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee, even as a case concerning the latter was being heard by by the judge.

The Chief Justice said: "Judges have no business to be granting interviews to television or whatever channels on matters which are pending before them."

Justice Narasimha queried "how can they, given an interview?".

"The judge is speaking about the petitioner in these terms in the interview, he is clearly disabled from participating anymore," the CJI added.

Additional Solicitor General (ASG) S.V. Raju said it is a huge scam.

The bench clarified that it is not touching the investigation in the scam and the court will not pass any order which will preclude a proper investigation into the case.

"The question is whether, a judge giving an interview and expressing himself about a political personality like thisa.the chief justice should assign the matter to somebody else. We have told you in advance, why we are concerned about it," the Chief Justice told Raju.

The top court was hearing an appeal by Banerjee against the high court's order for questioning him by the CBI and the ED. The transcript of the judge's interview was submitted to the court.

The top court also sought a report from the Calcutta High Court in the matter and said the Registrar General of high court is directed to personally verify from Justice Ganguly as to whether he had been interviewed and, in that event, clarify.

The bench said the Registrar General should file an affidavit before Friday before the registrar judicial of this court.

Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for Banerjee, urged the court to take into account Justice Gangopadhyay's interview wherein he allegedly spoke against the Trinamool leader.

On April 17, the Supreme Court had stayed a Calcutta High Court order permitting the CBI and ED to question Banerjee in the matter of allegations made by expelled youth Trinamool Congress leader Kuntal Ghosh that the central agency sleuths are putting pressure on him to name Banerjee in the multi-crore scam in recruitment of teaching and non-teaching staff in state-run schools in West Bengal.

New Delhi, April 11 (IANS) A bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud everyday usually hears around 100 cases on an average seeking urgent listing before the benches of the Supreme Court. The Chief Justice's court is often packed with lawyers, who mention their matter seeking urgent hearing.

During the mentioning of the cases, the Chief Justice is very soft spoken while engaging with lawyers and has rarely lost his cool during the court proceedings. However, on Tuesday, he got irked and warned a lawyer: "Don't mess around with my authority."

The lawyer had mentioned a case and requested the court for an early hearing in the matter but after the bench told him that his matter will be listed on April 17, he asked the liberty to mention the matter before another bench. "I can mention before another bench, if permitted," said the lawyer.

The bench, headed by the Chief Justice, and also comprising Justices P.S. Narasimha and J.B. Pardiwala, told the lawyer not to play tricks with him and said: "You can't mention it here and then elsewhere for an earlier date."

The lawyer understood that his submissions have irked the Chief Justice and expressed regret and said he should be excused for his submissions.

The Chief Justice told the lawyer, "Yes, you are excused. But do not mess around with my authority", as he proceeded with the mentioning process.