Justice Surya Kant takes oath as 53rd Chief Justice, Pg10

Key Highlights:

• Justice Surya Kant was sworn in as the 53rd Chief Justice of India on Monday at Rashtrapati Bhawan.
• President Droupadi Murmu administered the oath to Justice Kant, who took the oath of office in Hindi.
• Justice Kant and his predecessor, Justice B.R. Gavai, were lauded for bringing “Indianness” to the courts by Solicitor-General Tushar Mehta.
• Justice Kant was appointed to the Supreme Court on May 24, 2019, the same day as Justice Gavai.
• Justice Kant's tenure will be watched for his handling of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) case, now expanded to 12 States and Union Territories covering 51 crore people.
• Justice Kant was part of the benches that delivered key judgments including the abrogation of Article 370 and declaring the electoral bonds scheme unconstitutional.
• Justice Kant aims to reduce the pendency of over 90,000 cases in the Supreme Court during his tenure, which ends on February 2, 2027.

Detailed Insights:

• Justice Kant recently advised President Murmu that neither she nor State Governors are bound by timelines "imposed" by the Supreme Court while dealing with State Bills.
• Solicitor-General Tushar Mehta noted that Justice Kant and Justice Gavai's judgments drew reasoning from Indian case laws and legal principles, rather than foreign precedents.
• Justice Gavai ensured Justice Kant's maiden journey to the Supreme Court as CJI was in the official car, demonstrating respect for the office.
• Justice Kant is known for his approach of gently nudging disputes to resolution, exemplified by his role in resolving the farmers’ agitation by encouraging negotiations.
• The judicial interventions of Justice Kant's Bench have made the SIR procedure more accessible to citizens, though its constitutionality remains to be addressed.
• Justice Kant was also part of the Bench which heard the Pegasus spyware case and the case regarding the suspension of the sedition law.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Article 370: Article that granted special autonomous status to Jammu and Kashmir, later abrogated.
• Electoral Bonds Scheme: A financial instrument for making donations to political parties, which was declared unconstitutional.
• Sedition Law: Law under Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code criminalizing speech that incites violence or hatred against the government.