Priority for speeding up pending cases: new CJ

By Our Special Correspondent

CHENNAI, SEPT. 12. Mr. Justice B. Subhashan Reddy was today sworn in Chief Justice of the Madras High Court by the Governor, Dr. C. Rangarajan.

At a brief function held on the lawns of the Raj Bhavan here, the Chief Secretary, Mr. P. Shankar, read out the letter of appointment from the President, Mr. K.R. Narayanan.

With the Chief Minister, Ms. Jayalalithaa, her Cabinet colleagues, judges of the High Court, and the Chennai Mayor, Mr. M.K. Stalin, in attendance, Mr. Reddy took the oath in the name of God.

Thereafter, he was greeted by the Governor and Ms. Jayalalithaa. The acting Chief Justice, Mr. Narayana Kurup, the Advocate- General, Mr. N.R. Chandran, and members of the bar were also present. Ms. Jayalalithaa and Mr. Stalin also exchanged greetings.

Mr. Reddy assumes office at a critical period. As per the Supreme Court order, he will have to nominate a judge to hear Ms. Jayalalithaa's appeals in the TANSI and Pleasant Stay Hotel cases within a week.

Though his predecessor, Mr. Justice N.K. Jain, was transferred to the Karnataka High Court on August 22, Mr. Reddy's appointment was notified only yesterday and he flew in immediately from Hyderabad, to assume office.

Addressing a welcome reception on the court premises later in the afternoon, Mr. Justice Reddy said expediting disposal of pending cases would be his priority. In the same vein he said, ``I do not approve of technical disposal of cases,'' adding there should be a balance between the quantity and quality of cases settled.

Speedy justice must not be confined to criminal jurisdiction because civil jurisdiction was equally important.

Besides having good judges, the proper administration of justice required efficient advocates, a library and a good place for the advocates to assemble. Conceding that there was a constraint on the number of judges, Mr. Justice Reddy said that at present the judge-litigant ratio was a poor 1:1 lakh.

Mr. N.R. Chandran, pledged total cooperation by the members of the Bar as well as other judicial officers to the new Chief Justice in his efforts at improving the system. Mr. J. Rajendraprasad, president of the Law Association, expressed concern over the delay in finalising right persons for appointment as judges.

The former Bar Council Chairman, Mr. R. Margabandhu, underscored the importance of library and proper building facilities in mofussil courts. To avert frequent stand-offs between advocates and police, he suggested the formation of district-level coordination committees.

Among other who offered felicitations to Mr. Justice Reddy were the Madras High Court Advocates Association president, Mr. R. Karuppan, and the Madras Bar Association president, Mr. Venkatachalapathy.

Born in March 1943 at Bagh Amberpet in Hyderabad district, Mr. Justice Reddy obtained a science degree and later a law degree from the Osmania University. After having enrolled as advocate in January 1966, he had extensive practice covering all branches of law.

He was appointed judge of the Andhra Pradesh High Court on November 25, 1991. He is the 39th Chief Justice of the Madras High Court.

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