In this corner of the ring, ladies and gentlemen, is Rajendra Lodha, scion of an eminent judicial family of Jodhpur, Rajasthan and High Court justice of various states courts before becoming a Supreme Court Justice and later Chief Justice of India for the past 6 years. A hidebound judicial functionary in the best and worst traditions of the British Commonwealth judicicial system. Doesn't want to rock the boat because he knows that all India has against the barbarians of politics and corruption is the legal system. If this crashes India risks chaos.
In the opposite corner dear boxing fans is Markandey Katju a former justice of the Supreme Court and now chairman of the Press Council of India. Katju my friends is what you would call a rebel who will take the fight he feels strongly about, to the Indian public. As learned and experienced as his opponent, he dislikes tradition for its own sake and never hesitates to call a spade, a spade even at the risk of bad-mouthing the system. As eminent a judge as Lodha, but as different from him as chalk and cheese, this is not the first time Katju has gone public with what he preceives as grave wrongs that the government fails to right. He was incensed that Lodha pleaded helplessness about the failure of the system, without doing anything about it and is incensed again when Lodha admits to being able to do nothing when a judge with a shady past is being appointed to the Supreme Court at the behest of politicians. The core of the matter is not technique. Both flit like a butterfly and sting like a bee. It is not weight or arm reach. Both are equal on these counts. Katju has the advantage of surprise, Lodha that of his august office. It is not lack of support and cheering in the audience. Lodha can appeal to the collegium, Katju to the crowds fed up with the courts and the politicians and baying for blood on the streets to change the lethargy of law that keeps India behind while the private sector races it ahead. Now for the bout: Katju fires the first salvo, a direct hit to Lodha's jaw, with allegations that there is widespread corruption in the whole legal realm. In the appointment of tainted judges, in the blackmail by politicians in limiting the fair salaries of judges in return for favorable decisions, in the expectation of quid pro quo in appointments and a host of other things like housing and promotions. He pinpoints the devil as the collegium which he says is a failed system of judges appointing judges, behind closed doors with no accountability except to politicians who best operate in such a foggy environment. Lodha reels from the blow but having rolled with the sucker-punch, does not bleed too much. He delivers a few jabs to Katju's body saying that all these accusations even if true, cannot be discussed in the open or made known to the public lest they lose faith in the judiciary. Is this a lame excuse, a poor defense from a Chief Justice so blind that instead of changing things for the better, wants to maintain the status quo because it us less trouble. Once again. (See my recent Goanet post about Lodha professing inability to change the rotten system because it is so rotten that he is unable expect the government to change it). Or is it a genuine concern that a Chief Justice of India cannot ignore. My bet is on Katju. He has the killer instinct. But India being India, anything can happen. They can fix his hydration so he completely loses his voice. After a few off-the-air threats of course. Roland. Sent from Samsung Mobile
