Emphasising that the Indian judiciary is the custodian of the Constitution, Chief Justice of India Surya Kant on Thursday said that the judiciary does not take sides, but instead bases its decisions entirely on constitutional values.
“The greatest power in this country is our Constitution. That is why we have called the Constitution supreme, and the fundamental promises made in the Constitution, which include what we talk about as our primary Fundamental Rights – equality, dignity, rule of law, democratic values, an independent judiciary is included in it. Protecting and strengthening this basic constitutional structure – in all this, the Indian judiciary has a decisive role. The CJI stressed that public interest litigation (PIL) and suo motu cases are vital tools to protect rights for those who cannot easily approach the courts. “So, many times, for such community rights, for people’s rights, for social rights, and for their constitutional rights, it is our responsibility-either by the court acting on its own or when someone comes as a representative of the public to take steps through Public Interest Litigation, sometimes through suo motu action, or in any other form. Protecting those rights is our constitutional responsibility.
And the judiciary has to remain committed to that role,” he said. He highlighted that a large portion of the country’s population is “socially and economically backward” and they are “not in a position to easily approach the court for their legal rights, for their constitutional rights. People label that responsibility as judicial activism,” he said.
