SC, HCs not competing destinations for justice: CJI

Chief Justice of India Surya Kant on Sunday said the Supreme Court and High Courts were not “competing destinations for justice”, stressing the need to strengthen public confidence in High Courts as the first forum for constitutional remedies.

Addressing the Kerala High Court’s platinum jubilee celebrations in Kochi, the CJI highlighted the significance of Article 226, which empowers High Courts to issue directions for enforcement of fundamental and other legal rights.

“The difference between justice and injustice lies not in the final judgment, but in whether the court intervenes when intervention is most needed,” he said, emphasising the importance of timely interim relief.

He described the Supreme Court and High Courts as constitutional partners with complementary responsibilities, adding that constitutional justice did not begin and end in New Delhi but rested on a network of 25 High Courts.

“They understand the language of local grievances, the circumstances of regional communities and practical consequences of governmental action,” he said.

The CJI also praised Kerala’s contribution to women’s representation in the judiciary, citing Anna Chandy, the country’s first woman High Court judge, and M Fathima Beevi, the first woman Supreme Court judge.

He also recalled the Kerala High Court’s 1999 order prohibiting public smoking, saying it recognised the right to breathe smoke-free air under Article 21.