Don’t Regret January Press Conference: Retd Justice Kurian Joseph

(Retd) Justice Kurian Joseph also said that the crisis is not fully over because it takes long for changes to occur.

Justice Kurian Joseph during a press conference in New Delhi on 12 Jan 2018.

(Photo: IANS)

Days after his retirement, Justice Kurian Joseph on Friday, 30 November, said that neither the Supreme Court nor any other court can interfere in religious faith and rituals as long as they don’t violate the mandate of the Constitution.

"So long as the faith and rituals do not violate the mandate of the Constitution of India as provided under Article 25, no Supreme Court or no court for that matter can interfere," he told ANI at a press conference.

Speaking about the controversial press conference held on 12 January 2018 by the four senior most judges of the Supreme Court, including Justice Kurian, he said that he does not regret it.

Justices J Chelameswar, Ranjan Gogoi, MB Lokur and Kurian Joseph held a press conference on 12 January 2018. (Photo: PTI)

Kurian said that they had to take the step as “Supreme Court wasn’t going in the right direction”.

“Whatever I did, I did it very consciously. You cannot fully say that the crisis is over because it is an institutional crisis, so it takes long for the system and practices to change. But it’s changing and the process of change will continue.”

Retired judge Kurian Joseph, as told to <a href="https://www.aninews.in/news/national/general-news/no-political-pressure-in-judicial-exercise-but-in-appointments-justice-retd-kurian201811302009220005/">ANI</a>

‘Felt Someone Else Was Controlling the CJI’

Speaking to The Times of India (TOI), Justice Kurian said there were instances of external influence related to allocation of cases and appointment of judges to the Supreme Court and High Court.

“Someone from outside was controlling the CJI, that is what we felt. So we met him, asked him, wrote to him to maintain independence and majesty of the Supreme Court. When all attempts failed, we decided to hold a press conference.”

Justice Joseph Kurian told TOI

The other judges who were present at the press conference were Justices Ranjan Gogoi, MB Lokur, and Chelameswar. They had questioned the functioning of the then CJI Dipak Misra, spoken against the allocation of sensitive cases to judges with political bias including allocation of hearing of petition seeking probe into the the death of Judge Loya.

“After we spoke out to the nation there has been transparency,” Times Now quoted Kurian as saying. “After the new Chief Justice of India (Ranjan Gogoi) took charge, some things have changed. But it takes time,” he added.

On facing political pressures during his tenure, Joseph said, “There is no political pressure in the judicial exercise of a judge. I do believe there is no interference as much as the exercises of the judicial powers are concerned.” ANI reported him as saying.

(With inputs from ANI, The Times of India and Times Now)