I have relished and enjoyed the job, says CJI Ramana

I may be judged as one who meticulously followed the rules of the game and did not trespass into provinces forbidden, says outgoing CJI

On his final working day as the Chief Justice of India, Justice N.V. Ramana was on Friday given an emotional farewell by his colleagues and lawyers.

An overwhelmed senior advocate Dushyant Dave called Chief Justice Ramana a “citizens’ judge”, while senior advocate Kapil Sibal said the CJI held firm the judicial rudder during “turbulent times”.

Attorney-General K.K. Venugopal and Solicitor-General Tushar Mehta too shared their thoughts on Justice Ramana’s stint as the Chief Justice.

“When you ultimately judge me as a judge, I would like to say that I may be judged as a very ordinary judge, but one who greatly relished and enjoyed the job. I may be judged as one who meticulously followed the rules of the game and did not trespass into provinces forbidden. More importantly, as one who recognised preliminarily the moral power of a judge,” Chief Justice Ramana said in his farewell address.

He took over as the Chief Justice when work at the Supreme Court was severely hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The preceding years had been rough on the court for several reasons; it ranged from a press conference held by four senior top court judges to sexual allegations levelled against a sitting CJI.