Feel like baby again, says junior-most SC Judge K.M. Joseph
New Delhi, Aug 14 : Newly appointed Supreme Court Judge K.M. Joseph on Tuesday said that he "feels like a baby again" since he is the junior-most Judge of the apex court.
"At the age of 60 plus, I feel like a baby again," Justice Joseph said at a felicitation function organised for new apex court Judges by the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA), which was his first public appearance after taking oath as the 25th Judge of the Supreme Court.
He said: "I am far too conscious of my own limitations to be elevated to the highest court. It is indeed a great honour. It will be presumptuous on my part to even venture to make any promise. All that I can do is -- I hope and pray -- I will be true to the oath which I have taken and which will go a long way in dispensing justice."
The SCBA felicitated four new Judges -- Justices Indu Malhotra, Indira Banerjee, Vineet Saran and Justice Joseph.
The elevation of Justice Joseph -- who was Chief Justice of the Uttarakhand High Court -- to the apex court was mired in controversy. The Supreme Court collegium had recommended his name for elevation on January 10 but the Centre sent it back for reconsideration.
The collegium recommendation was reiterated on July 17.
When President Kovind cleared the name of Justice Banerjee, Justice Saran and Justice Joseph for elevation, Justice Joseph's name was third in seniority.
Senior Judges met Chief Justice Dipak Misra to convey their dissatisfaction over the government's decision to place Justice Joseph in the third place for the swearing-in.
They maintained that he should be senior among the three as his name was first to be recommended and was re-recommended after the government raised objections.
Government sources, however, had maintained that the seniority of Judges is on an all-India basis and not based on the Supreme Court collegium's recommendation.
In 2016, Justice Joseph had quashed President's rule in Uttarakhand when he was the High Court Chief Justice.
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Atul Subhash suicide case: SC grants custody of Bengaluru techie’s son to estranged wife
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday ruled that the custody of the minor son of Bengaluru techie Atul Subhash, who died by suicide, will remain with his estranged wife Nikita Singhania, who is facing charges of abetting his suicide along with her family members.
The ruling was delivered by a bench comprising Justices B.V. Nagarathna and S.C. Sharma, who denied the plea of Subhash’s mother, Anju Devi, to take custody of the child, Indian Express reported. The decision came after the bench spoke with the four-year-old boy via a video link.
The court had previously stated that Anju Devi was "virtually a stranger to the child," implying she lacked the necessary familiarity with her grandchild to assume guardianship.
Anju Devi requested the court to grant her custody of her grandson, emphasising that young children should not be sent to a boarding school. She also referenced allegations suggesting that Singhania may have been involved in Subhash’s death. However, the court noted that Singhania has not been proven guilty and cautioned against drawing conclusions based solely on media reports, IE mentioned.
During the hearing, the bench requested affidavits from the Haryana government and Singhania about the child’s condition, the report added.
Atul Subhash was found dead at his Bengaluru residence on December 9, 2024. The 36-year-old left behind a 24-page suicide note and a 90-minute video detailing alleged extortion and harassment by his spouse and her family, as well as corruption within the judicial system.
