“WE HAVE DISCHARGED our debt to the nation,” declared four senior judges of the Supreme Court on January 12, 2018. Ranjan Gogoi was among this rebellious four who held an unprecedented press conference to air their grievances against the manner in which Dipak Misra, then chief justice of India, was managing the apex court. They said they were forced to speak out because the independence of the judiciary was under threat.
The media had asked the foursome if they were aggrieved at the allocation of the case related to Justice B.H. Loya’s death to a particular bench. Three of the judges remained tightlipped. It was Gogoi who confirmed it was so. He came across as the boldest of the four judges, as he was next in line to become CJI.
Ironically, Gogoi is now at the centre of a controversy over the Narendra Modi government’s decision to nominate him to the Rajya Sabha. The move has been widely described as an assault on the independence of the judiciary. Critics point out that Gogoi, as CJI and master of the roster till last November, was allocating cases that were crucial to the government. He also adjudicated on matters that had deep political significance.
The brother judges who were with him at the historic press conference expressed disappointment at Gogoi’s decision to enter the Rajya Sabha. Justice (retd) Kurian Joseph said he was surprised at how Gogoi, “who once exhibited such courage of conviction to uphold the independence of the judiciary, has compromised the noble principles of the independence and impartiality of the judiciary”.
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