'Served Country With Dedication': As Retirement Nears, CJI DY Chandrachud Says He Is Thinking About How History Will Judge His Tenure

Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud reflected on his tenure in a recent public address, saying that he was thinking over questions about the legacy he would leave for the future generation of judges and lawyers.

Speaking at the convocation ceremony of JSW Law School in Bhutan, the Chief Justice said :

"I will be demitting office as the Chief Justice of India in November this year, after having served my country for two years. As my tenure is coming to end, my mind has been heavily preoccupied with fears about the future and the past. I find myself pondering over questions such as : Did I achieve everything I set out to do? How will history judge my tenure? Could I have done things differently.? What legacy will I leave for future generations of judges and legal professionals"

CJI said that he had endeavoured to give his job his fullest and that he has the satisfaction of serving the country with utmost dedication.

"The answers to most of these questions lie beyond my control and perhaps, I will never find answers to some of these questions. However, I do know that, over the last two years, I have woken up every morning with a commitment to give the job my fullest and gone to bed with the satisfaction that I served my country with utmost dedication. It is in this, that I seek solace. Once you have this sense of faith in your intentions and abilities, it is easier to not get obsessed with the outcomes. You begin to value the process and the journey towards these outcomes."

Bhutan princess Sonam Dechan Wangchuck and Bhutan's Chief Justice Lyonpo Chogyal Dago Rigdzin were among the dignitaries who were present at the function.

In his address, CJI told that as a child, he grew up with the unrelenting passion to make a difference in the world and driven by this insatiable zeal, he often pushed himself to the extremes, habitually working long hours and carrying a heavy burden. However, over the years, he realised that one's ability to contribute to our community is deeply rooted in one's self-perception and capacity for self-care.

"It is crucial to prioritize our well-being and find joy in the process. We often put our heart and soul into a project but fail to enjoy the journey because we are caught up in the fear of reaching the destination. As someone who is a few decades older than you, I can tell you that these fears are not easy to wish away, however, personal growth lies in being able to address them and tackling them head-on."

CJI advised the young graduates to combine the passion and idealism of their youth with the sophistication and expertise of their training. He also spoke about the need to prioritize the preservation of our distinct cultural identities in the age of globalisation,

"There is often a misconceived perception that the traditional values of our communities are antithetical to modern democratic ideas such as liberty, equality and dissent," he said.

"Countries such as Bhutan and India, often find themselves at crossroads with diverse influences, particularly from the West. However, nations located in unique historical, social, and cultural contexts, such as ours, must constantly challenge the assumption that these values and principles are universal or always contain the correct answer. The conventional Western definition of “human rights”, which tends to prioritise the individual over the community, while well-intentioned, fails to account for the diverse perspectives and cultural nuances that shape our understanding of justice. For instance, both India and Bhutan are home to communities that rely on traditional community-based dispute resolution and governance mechanisms. Such mechanisms must not be shunned as traditional and archaic. Instead, they must be supplemented by modern constitutional ideas. In India, our Constitution itself has provisions which deal with village panchayats and gram sabhas, thereby, institutionalising such processes and imbuing them with modern political thought and procedure," CJI said.