New Delhi: Taking a long time to respond publicly over the issue of country’s judicial system’s mal-functioning, Chief Justice of India Justice Dipak Misra cautioned those who criticized the judiciary from inside as well as outside by saying that it is easy to destroy a system than to build it.

During the ceremony of unfurling the national flag at the lawns of the Supreme Court on the 72^nd Independence Day, Justice Misra said, “to criticize, attack and destroy a system is quite easy… what is difficult and challenging is to transform it to a performing one. For this, one has to transcend one’s personal ambitions and grievances. Rather constructive steps need to be taken with positive mindset of reform, no matter howsoever small.”

He said, “Concrete reforms must be undertaken with rationality, maturity, responsibility and composure” and that “it is necessary to be productive instead of being counter-productive”.

The crucial comments come in the wake of some senior lawyers criticising judiciary on television shows few months ago.

The Chief Justice said, “There may be some elements trying to weaken the institution… But we refuse, you and I altogether, to succumb to them… We have to serve the lady of justice, the queen of justice. She holds the scales of justice symbolising that the act of delivering and imparting justice has to be balanced as far as possible and that is the basic essence of justice. Anyone who tries to create any kind of dent in that balance is hurting the queen of justice. And when queen of justice sheds tears, possibly all of us will shed tears”.

Speaking at the function, Supreme Court Bar Association President Vikas Singh, referred to media reports about some comments involving criticism of Judiciary functioning made by Judges during the hearing and asked Judges and lawyers not to make unnecessary comments.

Four former senior Indian judges on 14^th January this year released a letter to support several Supreme Court judges who openly criticized in front of the media about the way the Supreme court was functioning.

The retired judges included a former Supreme Court judge and a chief justice of the Delhi High Court — confirmed the news report that they had issued an open letter addressed to the Chief Justice of India after four Supreme Court judges held a media press conference on Friday in which one of them warned that the nation’s democracy was under threat because of the way the Apex court was being run.

The four sitting judges of the Supreme Court had openly in front of the media criticized distribution of cases to judges and raised serious concerns about judicial appointments in the nation’s highest court under Chief Justice Dipak Misra.

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