Rights and duties

CHIEF Justice of India (CJI) NV Ramana could not have put it better: a constitutional republic shall thrive only when its citizens are aware of what their Constitution envisages, and to that end, every individual must be made aware of the rights and duties. The law graduates, too, can make a difference by becoming instruments of social change, as appealed by the CJI. All things considered, it would be injudicious to label lack of awareness as the weak link; that unkind distinction goes to the slow wheels of justice, invariably leading to disillusionment and distrust. The right to a fair trial, equal access to justice and a sense of trust are vital components of the social contract between the citizens and the state. Mere explanation of the constitutional provisions in simpler terms won’t help. The systems should be seen to be working.

A collective duty to promoting constitutional culture would encompass paying attention to the institutional inadequacies, which are often alluded to by top judges and Law Commission reports. The correlation between the availability of judicial infrastructure and justice delivery is well established. In 2016, the then CJI, TS Thakur, got visibly upset as he listed the case backlog, the judicial vacancies and the infrastructure woes that impacted justice delivery and credibility. Six years down the line, the same urgency is visible in CJI Ramana’s call for an overhaul of the country’s judicial infrastructure at the district and subordinate levels. The pandemic brought out the shortcomings in no uncertain terms. Forced to conduct their business in the digital mode, only one-third of lower courts had proper facilities. Justice delivery, as a result, was dealt a severe blow.

The CJI, in his reference to the transformation in the legal profession, touched upon the slow fading out of the importance of pedigree and hereditary practice, as first-generation lawyers shine through. As he pins hopes on the young talented minds showing their commitment to legal aid, the focus has to be on fixing the gaps that hamper the delivery of justice.

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