Former SC judge Justice Abdul Nazeer appointed as Governor of Andhra Pradesh
New Delhi: Former Supreme Court judge Justice S Abdul Nazeer has been appointed as the Governor of Andhra Pradesh.
President of India Droupadi Murmu appointed him as the new governor, following the transfer of incumbent governor Biswa Bhushan Harichandan as the Governor of Chhattisgarh, reports Live Law.
A native of Moodbidri in Dakshina Kannada, Justice Nazeer, who retired from the Supreme Court on January 4, 2023, had been elevated to the apex court from the Karnataka High Court in February 2017.
As judge of the Supreme Court, he was a part of prominent judgments in the K S Puttaswamy case, considering the ‘Right to Privacy’ a fundamental right; the case of triple talaq, dissenting to consider the practice as valid; the Ayodhya-Babri Masjid dispute, as a part of the unanimous verdict allowing the construction of the Ram Mandir; and the demonetization case, where he led the Constitution Bench that upheld the note ban as valid.
Justice Nazeer also led the Constitution Bench which held that the additional restrictions not found in Article 19(2) could not be imposed on the right to free speech of ministers and legislators.
The last instance of a Supreme Court judge being appointed as a Governor was that of former Chief Justice of India P Sathasivam as the Governor of Kerala in 2014. Former Supreme Court judge Justice Fatima Beevi had also been the Governor of Tamil Nadu during 1997-2001, after her retirement as a Supreme Court judge in 1992.
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K’taka HC judge whose controversial remarks triggered controversy expresses regret before open court
Bengaluru: Karnataka High Court judge, Justice V Srishananda, on Saturday expressed regret in open court after facing backlash over his controversial remarks in his recent court hearings, reported Bar and Bench.
Two purported video clips from Justice V Srishananda’s court hearing that show him making inappropriate comments went viral across social media platforms.
On Saturday, Justice Srishananda invited members of the Advocates Association, Bengaluru, and senior lawyers to his courtroom at 2:30 PM, where he read out a note expressing regret for inappropriate comments.
Quoting Advocates Association President Vivek Subba Reddy, Bar and Bench wrote, “He expressed regret for the comments and clarified that it was not his intention to offend any community or members of the Bar. He also requested the association to relay this message to all members of the Bar.”
Reddy further stated, “We also advised him to encourage young lawyers in the courtroom and refrain from making any irrelevant remarks during hearings.”
Another senior lawyer present during the session confirmed to the legal news portal that Justice Srishananda also addressed comments directed at a woman lawyer, who was seen in one of the videos being reprimanded by the judge. The judge Justice Srishananda clarified that his remarks were not intended to target her (woman lawyer) specifically, but rather pertained to the appellant she was representing. “He explained that his comment was meant to imply that the appellant seemed to know a lot about the other party,” said the lawyer.
In addition, Justice Srishananda assured those present that he would avoid making such comments in the future.
The controversy came to light on September 19, when a video clip from an August 28 Court hearing surfaced on social media, showing Justice Srishananda referring to a Muslim-majority sub-locality in Bengaluru’s Goripalya as "Pakistan." Hours later, another video from the same courtroom emerged, in which the judge was seen making a gender-insensitive remark.
Following outrage over the viral videos, a Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, along with Justices Sanjiv Khanna, BR Gavai, Surya Kant, and Hrishikesh Roy, on September 20 took a suo motu cognizance and sought a report from the Karnataka High Court Registrar General in connection with the viral video.
