Chief Justice of India K G Balakrishnan on Saturday praised the judiciary for playing an important role in bringing in some of the landmark legislations passed by Parliament in recent years.
Balakrishnan, who is going to demit office next week, said that it is because of courts' intervention that the government has enacted legislation for free and compulsory education and the Right to Information Act.
"In recent years, the enactment of the Right to Information Act, the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act are some prominent examples of far-reaching legislations whose origin can be attributed to judicial interventions in some part," said Justice Balakrishnan at a national seminar on 'Law and Governance'.
"The Executive has also been responsive towards directions and guidelines given in judicial decisions that have acted as precursors for progressive legislations," he said and asked the government to make the Food Security Bill into a law.
On good governance, the outgoing Chief Justice said that the executive has to follow the rule of law to ensure better living standards for citizens and formulate strategies to make the state apparatus work for betterment of all sections of the society. He also said media plays an important role in ensuring good governance in a democracy.
{{/usCountry}}On good governance, the outgoing Chief Justice said that the executive has to follow the rule of law to ensure better living standards for citizens and formulate strategies to make the state apparatus work for betterment of all sections of the society. He also said media plays an important role in ensuring good governance in a democracy.
{{/usCountry}}Justice H S Kapadia, the Chief Justice-Designate who was also present at the function, said that the fundamental rights of the citizens and the responsibility of the government became meaningful only when they became justiciable and at this juncture the superior courts should understand the consequences of their judgements.
"Time has come for courts to reframe welfare rights under the Constitution as rights to minimum provision rather than a right to equal access," Justice Kapadia said.