New Delhi: Chief Justice of India-designate Justice UU Lalit said he wants to ensure that at least one constitution bench is functioning in the Supreme Court throughout the year. It is one of the three areas he intends to work on during his tenure.
The other two areas Justice Lalit wants to work on are - listing cases for hearing in the top court and mentioning urgent matters. He will become India's 49th chief justice on Saturday.
He was speaking at the farewell function organised by the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) for outgoing CJI NV Ramana.
Justice Lalit said he has always believed that the role of the Supreme Court is to lay down law with clarity. "The best possible way to do that is to have larger benches as early as possible so that the issues are clarified immediately."
Focusing on listing, he said: "I must assure you that we will strive hard to make the listing as simple, as clear, and as transparent as possible".
About urgent matters, he said: "I will have a word with all my learned colleagues on the bench and we will certainly sort that out and very shortly, you will have a clear-cut regime where any urgent matter can freely be mentioned before the respective courts."
Praising CJI Ramana, Justice Lalit said one of his stand-out achievements is the appointment of over 250 judges in high courts across the country as a result of the top court's recommendation. He added that another such achievement was his efforts to meticulously and very forcefully pursue all the chief ministers and chief justices to concentrate on issues concerning infrastructure in the district and lower judiciary.
"It is a tough time for somebody like me. Look at the popularity of my predecessor. How am I going to don that mantle from now on? Right at the outset, even before I assume office, I express my complete inability to match and be anywhere near this popularity," he added.
Justice Lalit is set to have a 74-day tenure as the CJI as his retirement date is on November 8.