A day after the encounter killing of four accused in Telangana rape and murder case of a young doctor, the Chief Justice of India, Sharad Arvind Bobde said on Saturday that "justice is never ought to be instant. Justice must never ever take the form of revenge it loses its character when turned into an act of revenge".
CJI Bobde made this comment at an event in Jodhpur.
During the event, he said, “...I believe justice loses its character when it becomes revenge. There is a need in the judiciary to invoke self-correcting measures but whether or not they should be publicised is a matter of debate.”
As reported by PTI, Justice Bobde said, “Recent events in the country have sparked off the old debate with new vigour. There is no doubt that the criminal justice system must reconsider its position and attitude towards laxity and eventual time it takes to dispose of criminal matters.”
Considering the fact of massive pending cases in the court, Justice Bobde said judiciary must remain committed to making justice accessible to people by strengthening the existing avenues and evolving newer means for an affordable, quick and satisfactory settlement of disputes and also invoke self-correcting measures.
“I believe the judiciary must correct itself & indeed it did during the time when the much-criticised press conference was held. It was nothing more than a self-corrective measure and I do not wish to justify it,” CJI said while remembering the “self-corrective measure” done at the unprecedented press conference held by four senior-most judges of the Supreme Court last year.