The long dark tea time of the soul

After some confusing signals, things are much more clearer now. Hon’ble justice Jagdish Bhalla has not been promoted as chief justice of Chhattisgarh high court. Instead, he has been transferred to Bilaspur HC from allahabad HC. By sheer coincidence, the present chief justice of Bilaspur HC, Hon’ble justice HL Dattu has also been transferred to Kerala high court. Hence, by virtue of being the seniormost judge in the CG high court, Justice Bhalla will automatically serve as the acting chief justice, till the time anyone else is appointed. This is indeed a great news for the state, and with his unquestionable integrity and honest demeanour, Justice Bhalla will bring a fresh air of respectability to the judiciary.

The context is important. Last year, Justice Bhalla made news quiet a few times. Each instance proved his ingenuity, dedication and sensitivity to the poor. It must be said that in our country, judges are not appointed or promoted, after delicate public debates. Neither are the directly accountable to the citizens. They are beholden by the spirit of constitution. However, the de-facto promotion of Justice Bhalla is a step in the right direction, a step that echoes the needs and aspirations of a large number of people, in the state and otherwise. Here it is important to have a look and reiterate some of his extraordinary actions in the past year. There is no statute in the lawbook that stops a citizen from praising a judge. Hence I took it upon myself to spread the kind words about Justice Bhalla, on his ‘appointment’ as the highest judicial authority of my state.

The SP government of Uttar Pradesh has promised to provide nearly 2200 acres to Anil Ambani led reliance industries in Dadri, Ghaziabad. They will develop world’s largest gas based power plant there to serve electricity to the poor of UP. The people of Dadri were more than enthusiastic in parting away with their land, for the sake of nation building. This natural progress of the society was not palatable to certain individuals, and they planned a rally in Dadri on July 8, 2006. Apprehending violence and intimidation of the villagers in Dadri, reliance industry approached the lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court in the evening of 7th july 2006, well after office hours. The test of character is one’s ability to handle crisis situations. In an extraordinary circumstance, Justice Bhalla took it upon himself to ensure peace and order in Dadri and constituted a bench to look into the matter, and they continued the hearing till midnight at the residence of one of the judges. Following the family tradition of freedom and objectivity was Honourable judge’s son Aarohi Bhalla, who himself was the petitioner on behalf of reliance. Showing zeal and promptness, the bench passed an order at midnight, ordering the state to ensure peace in Dadri, deploy force if necessary, and to see to it that no meeting of leaders with personal agendas takes place in Dadri as scheduled. The judge could have and/or postponed the hearing for another day, but his sensitivity to people’s needs, and respect for those who cannot approach the courts in time, made him sacrifice his own comfort for the public good.

NDTV reported that Justice Bhalla’s wife, Renu Bhalla purchased a property worth Rs. 5 lacs near Noida. The market price of that piece of land is said to be Rs. 7.2 crores. Knowing his impeccable integrity, this news should be taken with a pinch of salt. What would any individual do with 7200 sq mts, Rs 7.2 crores worth of land? Even if it turns out to be true, this deal shows the wonderful bargaining skills of the honourable judge’s wife. That the same builders, who fleece the middle class of its hard earned income, were forced to virtually gift away prime property is indeed a statement of courage on the judge’s part. This should be a happy news for all of us. Let’s be assured that we might see schools, colleges, and a hospital for the benefit of the poor at that very same site. Honourable judge’s concern for the poor knows no bounds.

Last year an unexpected rumour caught up with the Bilaspur high court. Apparently the court had passed an order banning eggs from regular markets, classifying them as non vegetarian items. Although found to be untrue, this did raised a huge outcry across the country. The court did not pass any such order, but the kind of public acceptance of this affair tells us about the judiciary’s image. The order was absurd, and the public perception was that the court can be a part of absurdity. In such a scenario, Justice Bhalla’s ‘appointment’ as chief justice sends all the right signals. At a time, when Chhattisgarh is on the verge of a new leap, when the contradictions between old and new are being ironed out to create a new tomorrow, appointment of an honest and upright person as the chief of judiciary is a welcome move. It fills me with cheer and we should all celebrate this event.