Copies Of Judgments Should Be Made Available In The Language Of The Litigants: President Ram Nath Kovind

President of India Shri Ramnath Kovind on Saturday said a system could be evolved whereby certified translated copies of judgement are made available by the High Courts in the local or regional language.“It is important to not only take justice to the people, but also to make it understandable to litigating parties in a language they know. High Courts deliver judgements in English, but we are a country of diverse languages. The litigant may not be conversant with English and the finer points of the judgement may escape him or her. The litigating parties will thus be dependent on the lawyer or another person to translate the judgement. This can add to time and cost. Perhaps a system could be evolved whereby certified translated copies of judgments are made available by the Honourable High Courts in the local or regional language. This could happen in a period of say 24 or 36 hours after the judgement is pronounced. The language could be Malayalam in the Honourable Kerala High Court or Hindi in the Honourable Patna High Court, as the case may be”.President Kovind was speaking at the Valedictory Function of the Diamond Jubilee Celebrations of High Court of Kerala.Chief Justice of India Justice Dipak Misra, Law Minister Ravishankar Prasad, Judges of Supreme Court Justices J.Chelameswar, Kurian Joseph, Ashok Bhushan and Mohan Shantanagoudar were also present in the occasion.President also said that the judiciary is one of India’s most valued and respected institutions.Its fearless and independent functioning and stature has enhanced India’s credibility in the democratic world. Every Indian is proud of the judiciary and respects its verdicts and its commitment to the values that embody our nationhood. The constitutional framework rests on the three pillars of the judiciary, the legislature and the executive. Our Constitution is perhaps the best document in the world in laying down the balance between the roles of these three institutions.He also said delay in justice delivery is a pressing concern in our country."Often those who suffer are among the poorest and most underprivileged in our society. We must find mechanisms to ensure quick disposal of cases. We could all consider an approach that makes adjournments the exception in an emergency situation rather than a tactic to prolong court proceedings. We must find a way forward. And I am happy to note that the Judiciary in moving ahead in this direction", he said.About Kerala Judiciary"Some truly great jurists have served as judges in this Honourable High Court. The first lady High Court judge of the country, Justice Anna Chandy, became a judge here in 1959. This was exceptional for its times. It was as much as six years later, in 1965, that Judge Elizabeth Lane became the first woman judge of the High Court in Britain. Therefore, in giving representation to women judges, the Indian judiciary was ahead of many other countries. The first lady judge of the Honourable Supreme Court of India, Justice M. Fathima Beevi, too was from the Honourable Kerala High Court. Justice K.G. Balakrishnan from the Honourable Kerala High Court became the Chief Justice of India in 2007. Who can forget Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer, a judge of remarkable humanistic values and the conscience keeper of the legal fraternity in our country? In 1968, he became a judge in this Honourable High Court. Later he left an indelible imprint on our national life while he was at the Honourable Supreme Court. He is remembered and cherished as a role model to this day"Here is the Full Text of his Speech1. This is my second visit to Kerala since becoming President of India, but it is the first time I am visiting Kochi in my current capacity. As an individual with a background in the legal profession, I am doubly happy to be here for the closing function of the diamond jubilee of the Honourable High Court of Kerala.2. This Honourable High Court has a glorious tradition of 60 years. Its origins are in the Travancore High Court, which existed for a span of 67 years. It then merged with the Cochin High Court to form the Travancore-Cochin High Court in 1949. After the re-organisation of states in 1956, Kerala came into existence on November 1, 1956. This followed the merger of the Travancore-Cochin State and the erstwhile Malabar District of the Madras Presidency. It also led to the creation of the Honourable Kerala High Court.3. Some truly great jurists have served as judges in this Honourable High Court. The first lady High Court judge of the country, Justice Anna Chandy, became a judge here in 1959. This was exceptional for its times. It was as much as six years later, in 1965, that Judge Elizabeth Lane became the first woman judge of the High Court in Britain. Therefore, in giving representation to women judges, the Indian judiciary was ahead of many other countries. The first lady judge of the Honourable Supreme Court of India, Justice M. Fathima Beevi, too was from the Honourable Kerala High Court....

Copies Of Judgments Should Be Made Available In The Language Of The Litigants: President Ram Nath Kovind

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