Date:07/11/2009 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2009/11/07/stories/2009110758880200.htm

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

“Supreme Court judges accountable to people too”

Special Correspondent

Former judge agrees to write a book on judicial accountability

— Photo: K.V.Srinivasan

Relevant topic: Governor Surjit Singh Barnala releases the book “Law and Social Justice” in Chennai on Friday. U.S. Consul General Andrew T.Simkin (right) received the first copy.

CHENNAI: Supreme Court judges are accountable not only to the Constitution, but also to the people of India, said former Supreme Court judge S. Mohan.

“The earlier theory was that the Supreme Court is accountable to none but the Constitution,” he said, at a function to release his book on “Law and Social Justice,” in Chennai on Friday. “But I say that undoubtedly, you are accountable to the people as well... It [The Constitution] says ‘We, the people...’, which means that you must be accountable to the people.”

He was commenting on the recent focus on judicial accountability and agreed to the request from The Hindu Editor-in-Chief N. Ram that he start preparing a book on that subject.

The book being released is a compilation of 17 of Mr. Mohan’s speeches. It shows where he stands on the issue of judicial accountability, whether in the demand for judges to declare their assets publically, transparency about the appointment of new judges or issues regarding how to deal with allegations of corruption, said Mr. Ram. The book also showed Mr. Mohan’s respect for the cultural diversity and pluralism of Indian society, his commitment to the ‘idea of India’, his passion for social justice, and his intellectual and emotional pursuit of national integration and unity, he added.

Governor Surjit Singh Barnala, who released the book, recalled his own experience as a practising lawyer for 25 years. “Legal profession must become more service-oriented. It is the bounden duty of everyone in this profession to uphold its dignity and integrity,” he said. Lawyers have an important role in the welfare of the needy who seek justice, he added.

“If you want peace, work for justice,” said Andrew T. Simkin, Consul General of the United States, quoting an American saying. “India and the US share the value of a common priority to the rule of law,” he said, after receiving the first copy of the book.

The book argues that law is much more than just a restraining influence and needed to maintain peace and order. It was an instrument of social change, even social revolution, said R.T. Sabapathy Mohan, vice-chancellor of Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, who felicitated Mr. Mohan.