‘Nor Should It Be Instant; Will Lose Its Character Then’

Jodhpur:

Justice must not take the form of revenge, Chief Justice of India S A Bobde said on Saturday, a day after four men suspected of raping and murdering a young veterinarian were shot dead by the police in a pre-dawn “encounter” on the outskirts of Hyderabad.

“I do not think justice can ever be, or ought to be, instant, and justice must never ever take the form of revenge. I believe justice loses its character of justice if it becomes revenge,” the CJI said at the inauguration of a new building of the Rajasthan high court here.

At the same time, he admitted that recent events in the country have sparked an old debate with new vigour, where there is no doubt that the criminal justice system must reconsider its position and attitude towards the time it takes to dispose of a case.

The CJI said there was a need for invocation of self-correcting measures in the judiciary. “Whether they (those measures) should be publicised or not could be a matter of debate,” he added.

Referring to last year’s much-criticised press conference by four SC judges, including former CJI Ranjan Gogoi, Bobde said it was nothing more than a self-correcting measure, but he did not wish to justify it. He termed criticism the best form of correction. “I do not agree it could be damaging and discouraging,” he said.

“All the four were eminent judges and Justice Gogoi showed competence and led the judiciary from the front,” the CJI added.

Laying emphasis on pre-litigation mediation, the CJI said methods would have to be devised to not only speed up litigation, but also to prevent it altogether.

A candlelight march from Raj Ghat to India Gate in Delhi against rape cases turned violent after police stopped activists on Saturday

PM talks women’s safety with top cops

Security of women prominently figured in discussions at the all India director generals/inspector generals of police conference attended by PM Narendra Modi, Union home minister Amit Shah and NSA Ajit Doval in Pune. P 11

17-yr-old gangraped, burned in Tripura

A 17-year-old girl, allegedly held captive for ransom and raped for days, died soon after she was brought to a hospital with serious burn injuries early on Saturday.The girl had suffered 90% burns after being set on fire, allegedly by her boyfriend and his mother, in South Tripura on Friday. P 14

She’s burnt, will bury her in Unnao: Father

The family of the murdered Unnao rape victim said they have decided to bury her in the fields on the outskirts of their village. “We will bury her. I won’t light her pyre. My daughter is already burnt,” the devastated father said. He also demanded death for those who raped and killed his daughter. P 15

Need mediation courses in univs, says CJI

There are laws for pre-litigation mediation and I take this opportunity to consider why we should not compulsorily have prelitigation mediation across all courts,” he said, adding that results of this mechanism should carry the force of decree.

CJI Sharad Arvind Bobde stressed the need for the introduction of mediation courses in universities. He underlined the importance of artificial intelligence in strengthening access to justice by providing lawyers real-time information about cases.