We need more bold & courageous judges for Constitution to survive: Justice Ujjal Bhuyan
Mumbai: Speaking at the farewell ceremony of former Supreme Court judge Justice Abhay S Oka, organised by the Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa, sitting Supreme Court judge Justice Ujjal Bhuyan stressed the need for bold and courageous judges to uphold the Constitution of India.
Quoting Caroline Kennedy, Justice Bhuyan remarked, “We need to have more bold and courageous judges. We have had such judges and will continue to have them, and this is how the Constitution will survive.” He added that the rule of law is the bedrock of any democracy and that an independent judiciary is essential for decisions free from political influence—something he said reflected Justice Oka's judicial journey.
Reflecting on the evolution of the basic structure doctrine, Justice Bhuyan referred to the 1963 Supreme Court of Pakistan judgment in Fazlur Kadir Chaudhary vs Mohammad Abdul Haq, noting it as an early instance of the concept of basic features. He reaffirmed the validity of India’s Kesavananda Bharati judgment, stating that while it has been criticised as anti-democratic, the Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court has upheld it in at least ten judgments.
Addressing the issue of judicial appointments, Justice Bhuyan spoke against the now-struck-down NJAC Act, stating it violated the principle of separation of powers and undermined judicial independence. He dismissed former Union Minister Arun Jaitley’s criticism of the Collegium system—where Jaitley had referred to “the tyranny of unselected judges”—as “untenable and without place.”
Concluding his speech, Justice Bhuyan cited India’s first President Dr Rajendra Prasad: “We have prepared a democratic Constitution but the successful working of the Constitutional institutions requires in those, who have to work them, willingness to respect the viewpoints of others, capacity for compromise and accommodation.” Commenting on the relevance of the quote, he said, “How prophetic his words were. He spoke this in 1949, and today we are in 2025. It was important then and so relevant even now.”
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3 DRG personnel killed, 1 injured as IED goes off during demining operation in Chhattisgarh
Kanker (PTI): Three personnel of the District Reserve Guard (DRG), including an inspector, were killed and another jawan was injured after an improvised explosive device (IED) went off while they were trying to neutralise it in Kanker district of Chhattisgarh on Saturday, police said.
This was the first blast incident linked to Naxalite activity in the state since the country was declared free from armed Maoists on March 31.
The explosion occurred in a forest area under Chhotebethiya police station limits, near the Narayanpur district border, when a DRG team was conducting a demining operation to locate and defuse IEDs planted earlier by Naxalites, a police official said.
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During the operation, the security personnel detected an IED. However, the explosive went off while they were in the process of defusing it, seriously injuring four personnel, he said.
Inspector Sukhram Vatti, constable Krishna Komra and constable Sanjay Gadhpale succumbed to their injuries on the spot, the official said.
Another injured constable, Parmanand Komra, is undergoing treatment and receiving necessary medical care, he said.
Inspector General of Police, Bastar Range, Sundarraj Pattilingam said, based on inputs from surrendered Maoist cadres and other intelligence over the past few months, security forces had recovered and neutralised hundreds of IEDs planted earlier by Naxalites across the Bastar range, comprising seven districts, including Kanker.
"However, in today's unfortunate incident, the IED accidentally exploded while the Kanker district police team was trying to defuse it, resulting in the death of three personnel and serious injuries to one," he said.
