SC JUDGE: GET RID OF COLONIAL HANGOVER

Justice Abdul Nazeer of the Supreme Court, one of the five judges who delivered the Ayodhya verdict, said that there was a need to rethink and reformulate the country's legal system.

“Only then can it reflect India's current realities, which is an amalgamation of the rich and diverse heritage of several centuries and the 'secure future' dreams and aspirations of the billion plus Indians,” Justice Nazeer said.

"We must go back in time. The ancient scriptures can provide an undistorted picture of the Indian legal system," Justice Nazeer said, speaking on the topic ‘Decolonisation of Indian Legal System’ at the 16th national council meeting of the Akhil Bharatiya Adhivakta Parishad here on Sunday.

"The need of the hour is Indianization of the legal system. Even though it may be an enormously time-consuming effort, I firmly believe that it would be worth the effort as it can revitalise the legal system and align it with the country's cultural, social and heritage aspects in order to ensure a robust delivery of justice," he said.

Taking a critical look at the practices in courts, Justice Nazeer said, “Today justice is not demanded but prayed for in the humblest terms. Judges continue to be addressed as lordships and ladyships. The ordinary litigant is often unable to bear the expenses of pursuing them in some distant higher courts, a practice which was introduced by the British colonials with their Privy Council.”

On pendency of cases, he said judges are rendered helpless in the face of mounting cases, even if they want to help the litigants.