CJI Gavai's Big Protocol Remark Amid Absence Of Top Officials

Amid a debate over judicial overreach, Chief Justice of India BR Gavai today pointed out protocol gaps during a visit to his home state, Maharashtra. In a subtle remark aimed at the Executive, he said discussions about Article 142 -- which gives special powers to the Supreme Court -- would have begun if judges broke protocol.

The Chief Justice, who took over the country's top judicial post last month and became the second Dalit to be elevated to the post, attended a felicitation ceremony in Mumbai and then visited Babasaheb Ambedkar's memorial Chaitya Bhoomi.

During his address at the felicitation event organised by the Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa, the Chief Justice pointed out the absence of three key officials -- the Chief Secretary of Maharashtra, the Director General of Police, and the Mumbai Police Commissioner.

"The three pillars of democracy - Judiciary, Legislature, and Executive - are equal. Every Constitutional institution must reciprocate and show respect to other institutions. When a person from Maharashtra becomes the Chief Justice of India and visits Maharashtra for the first time, if the Chief Secretary of Maharashtra, the Director General of Police, or the Mumbai Police Commissioner don't feel it appropriate to be present, then they need to reflect on that. Protocols are not something new, it's a question of the respect one constitutional body gives to another," Chief Justice Gavai said.

"When the head of a constitutional institution visits the state for the first time, the way they are treated should be reconsidered. Had it been any one of us, discussions about Article 142 would have arisen. These may seem like small things, but the public must be made aware of them," he added.

When the Chief Justice proceeded to Chaitya Bhoomi, Maharashtra Chief Secretary Sujata Saunik, Director General of Police Rashmi Shukla and Mumbai Police Commissioner Deven Bharti were present, ostensibly after they came to know of the Chief Justice's remarks.

At Chaitya Bhoomi, when the Chief Justice was asked about his remarks on the protocol lapse, he replied that he is "not fussy" about protocols but had only said what had happened.

The Chief Justice's remarks, especially his reference to Article 142, are significant as they come against the backdrop of the allegations of judicial overreach from some quarters following the Supreme Court's landmark judgment in the Tamil Nadu case that effectively set a deadline for the President and Governors for clearing Bills passed by the legislature for the second time.

President Droupadi Murmu has written to the Supreme Court and asked if timelines could be imposed on Governors. "Is the Governor bound by the aid and advice tendered by the Council of Ministers while exercising all the options available to him when a Bill is presented before him under Article 200 of the Constitution of India?" the President asked the Supreme Court.