Bombay Bar Assoc condemns SC judge for glorifying PM Modi
The Bombay Bar Association (BBA) on Thursday passed a resolution condemning senior Supreme Court judge, Justice Arun Mishra, for praising Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi at an international judicial conference last month. The resolution comes on the heels of a similar exercise by the Supreme Court Bar Association.
As per the resolution, the BBA deprecates the conduct of Justice Mishra for making “obsequious remarks” about the PM which were “improper”.
On February 22, Justice Mishra had attended an inaugural ceremony of the International Judicial Conference in Delhi. While delivering the vote of thanks, he had remarked, “India is a responsible and most friendly member of the international community under the stewardship of internationally acclaimed, visionary prime minister, Shri Narendra Modi.”
However, it was the latter part of the speech that did not go down well with the executive committee of the Bar Association of India and Supreme Court Bar Association.
Mishra had said, “All these three organs of the state have to work independently but in tandem to make the democracy successful, to visualise, and for effective implementation of constitutional aspirations and its values.”
On February 25, the executive committee expressed its concern and dismay and stated that such words, “dilute the perception of impartiality and independence” of the court and “diminishes the confidence of the general public”.
The following day on February 26, the SC Bar, in a resolution, strongly condemned Justice Mishra’s remarks, stating, “Such proximity and familiarity may impact the decision-making process of the honourable judges.”
In light of the above observations and actions by the two bodies, the BBA on Thursday passed the resolution. “The Union of India is one of the biggest litigants, if not the biggest, and it is imperative that the judiciary is and appears to be objective in its approach to the members of the Executive, both within and outside the courtroom,” the BBA resolution stated.
The resolution also condemned the remarks of Manan Mishra, chairman of the Bar Council of India, who defended the remarks of Justice Mishra.