CJI Chandrachud Responds To Row Over Ganesh Puja With PM Modi: 'We Know Our Duties'

Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, set to retire on November 10, 2024, addressed the recent debate surrounding his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during Ganesh Puja in September.

He clarified that such meetings are routine and intended to discuss judiciary-related infrastructure issues, not judicial decisions.

The Prime Minister's visit to the Chief Justice's residence during the festival prompted questions from the Opposition regarding the meeting's appropriateness.

In response, Chief Justice Chandrachud stated, "There is enough maturity among judges of constitutional courts and the heads of the executive to firmly keep aside judicial matters out of the purview of any discussion."

He further explained, "We know our duties in the democratic system of governance, and the political executive know theirs. No judge, least of all the Chief Justice of India or Chief Justices, can even remotely invite any threat, actual or perceived, to the independence of the judiciary."

Speaking at the Loksatta lecture series, Justice Chandrachud noted that in many states it is customary for Chief Justices to meet Chief Ministers.

"You never meet for a judicial discussion. And the maturity of our political system lies in the fact that there is a great deal of deference to the judiciary, even in the political class," he added.

Highlighting the importance of these meetings, Chandrachud cited the need to address judicial infrastructure, such as new court buildings and accommodations for judges. "For this, you need a meeting of the Chief Justice and the Chief Minister," he said, reflecting on his experience as Chief Justice in various High Courts.

The outgoing Chief Justice underscored the necessity of maintaining an open dialogue between the judiciary and the government. "We have to understand that the work of all three arms is dedicated to one and the same goal-the betterment of the nation. So long as we trust this process, I think we must accept that there has to be continuing dialogue," he stated.

He also remarked that judges sometimes encounter political leaders at social gatherings but do not discuss judicial matters in such contexts.

### Opposition Criticism of PM Modi's Ganesh Puja with Chief Justice

Following PM Modi's visit to Chief Justice Chandrachud's home, a controversy arose. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut called on DY Chandrachud to recuse himself from the case concerning the dispute between Shiv Sena (UBT) and the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena.

Party leader Priyanka Chaturvedi voiced similar concerns, highlighting the repeated adjournments in the Sena vs Sena case.

"Ganpati puja is a personal matter, but you are taking a camera. The message it sends is uncomfortable. The Chief Justice of India and the Prime Minister are significant figures. So what can we say if they agreed to put out these photographs in the public domain," RJD leader and Rajya Sabha MP Manoj Jha commented.

In contrast, BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla defended the meeting, recalling a 2009 Iftar gathering hosted by then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, which was attended by the then Chief Justice of India KG Balakrishnan.