Markandey Katju

Ex-Justice
Markandey Katju
Chairman, Press Council of India
In office
5 October 2011  5 October 2014
Judge, Supreme Court of India
In office
10 April 2006  19 September 2011
Chief Justice, Delhi High Court
In office
12 October 2005  10 April 2006
Chief Justice, Madras High Court
In office
28 November 2004  10 October 2005[1]
Personal details
Born (1946-09-20) 20 September 1946
Spouse(s) Rupa
Parents Shiva Nath Katju
Religion Atheist[2]

Justice Markandey Katju is the former Chairman, Press Council of India. Prior to his appointment as Chairman, Press Council of India, he served as a Judge at the Supreme Court of India.[3] Before being elevated as a judge to the Supreme Court, he had earlier served as the Chief Justice of Delhi High Court, Madras High Court, and as acting Chief Justice of Allahabad High Court.[4]

Early life and education

Markandey Katju was born on 20 September 1946 in Lucknow, British India, in a Kashmiri Pandit family. He topped the merit list of the Allahabad University's LL.B. examination in 1967. He was awarded Honoris Causa a Doctor of Philosophy from Lal Bahadur Shastri Sanskrit University, New Delhi, for his book Mimansa Rules of Interpretation, and a Doctorate of Law from Amity University. He is an Honorary Professor of Law at the National Law University, Delhi and Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia National Law University, Lucknow. Katju's background is related to law and politics. His father was S. N. Katju, formerly a Judge of the Allahabad High Court.[5] His grandfather Dr. Kailash Nath Katju, was one of India's leading lawyers and participated in the country's freedom movement. Dr. K. N. Katju was the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, the Governor of West Bengal and Odisha, as well as the Union Law, Home and Defence Minister.[6] Katju's uncle was B.N. Katju, the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court.[7] The academic Tilottama Mukherji Tharoor, first wife of Shashi Tharoor, is a cousin to Katju. Her mother was the sister of Katju's father.

Katju is married to Rupa and has two children, a son and a daughter.[8] He has a wide range of interests, including Sanskrit, Urdu, history, philosophy, science, and sociology, aside from his interest in jurisprudence.[9]

Career

Katju started his law practice at the Allahabad High Court in 1970-91 specializing in Labour Law, Taxation and Writ Petitions. He has worked as Standing Counsel, Income Tax Department. He was elevated to the Bench of Allahabad High Court in 1991. He was appointed acting Chief Justice of Allahabad High Court in August 2004, Chief Justice of Madras High Court in November 2004, and Chief Justice of Delhi High Court in October 2005. He was elevated to the Supreme Court of India in April 2006.[10] He retired from this position on 19 September 2011, after serving the Indian judiciary for 20 years.

His courtroom was one of the fastest in the Supreme Court disposing off 100-plus matters in a week. He is variously described as "brilliant","bold","one of the best","a maverick".[11] His strong belief in judicial restraint has been contrasted with some unconventional opinions he delivered. The contradiction may be partly explained in his own words: "A judge should restrain from challenging policy decisions in economic matters by the Government, though be an activist in cases of personal liberty."

Katju has served as a Member, International Association of Refugee Law Judges (IARIJ).

Publications

He has written several books, which include the following:

Some of his articles and speeches are:

Controversies, criticism, and praise

Courtroom

Politics

Markandey Katju has supported Simple Hindi as the link language of India.[46] He also said that there should be no imposition of Hindi.[47][48] He said that Hindi is spoken 15 times more than Tamil in India and Tamilians should also try to learn Hindi.

Stand on Pakistan

Katju's views on the legitimacy of Pakistan as a nation have come under criticism in Pakistan including from a former Pakistan foreign secretary, Shamshad Ahmad.[49][50] On several occasions, Katju has said in articles and lectures that he does not recognise Pakistan as a legitimate country as the whole basis is the two nation theory and he does not accept this.[49][51][52] Katju has also claimed that the eventual reunification of India and Pakistan is the only solution to the Kashmir issue.[53]

Katju justified his stance in a leading Pakistani newspaper The Nation, where he reiterated that only solution to the ongoing dispute is the reunification of India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh under a strong, secular, modern minded government.[49][50]

Katju's contribution to the release of fishermen arrested along the coastal areas on the border of India has earned him praise from human rights groups of Pakistan.[50]

Allegation of improper compromises in the collegium system of appointing judges

On 20 July 2014, Justice Katju sparked off a new controversy when on his blog, he alleged that in the year 2004, a corrupt judge was given an extension and later a permanent post due to strong political backing. He wrote that he himself raised concern about the conduct of this judge and after due probe from CJI, his doubt was found to be true. However, this judge had political backing from a political party in Tamil Nadu, and this party threatened to withdraw the support to the UPA government if this corrupt judge was not given an extension. He also alleged that a prominent Congress leader arranged extension to save the UPA government.

After his blog post, several parties and social groups raised concern over political interference in posting of the judges; however some of them also questioned the timing and purpose behind this revelation.[54][55]

View on gay relationships

On 25 December 2014 Justice Katju fuelled a controversy by saying that he regarded gay relationships to be "humbug and nonsense".[56] However, he later clarified that he has partially changed his mind after discussing the issue with others and accepted that he was partially wrong. His current position is that gay relationships should not be held to be a criminal offense as is the case in India today, and that this provision in the Indian penal code should be swiftly annulled. However, he continues to regard gay relationships as "unnatural".[57]

Reply to critics

In an article in The Hindu newspaper, Katju has responded to the charge that as Chairman of the Press Council of India, he should not comment on matters not related to the Press.[58]

Praise

Former Assistant Solicitor General of India Amarendra Sharan has praised Katju. Sharan says on Katju,"You can criticise his views, but you can't criticise the man. His integrity is unimpeachable."[33] The noted jurist Fali Nariman commented that Katju is a person who doesn't merely pretend to support human rights but lives it every moment of his life.[59][60] The former editor of The Times of India, Dilip Padgaonkar, has said that Katju is "an individual whose reputation for uprightness has been consistently above board." [61]

Confrontation with Indian Parliament

In March 2015, in his blog, Katju called Rabindranath Tagore and Subhash Chandra Bose as a British and Japanese agent respectively. Both the house of the Indian Parliament condemned his remarks and passed a resolution against him. Katju has filed a petition before the Supreme Court of India seeking a quashing of the said resolutions.[62]

View on cows

Describing lynching of a man near Delhi over rumours that he had consumed beef as "politically motivated", Katju said cow was just another animal "which cannot be anyone's mother".

"Cow is just an animal and an animal cannot be anyone's mother, if I like to eat beef then what's harm in it, even people worldwide consume beef, if I like to too eat then who can stop me..." he said during a function at Indian Institute of Technology, BHU.[63] He further added "I eat beef and I don't consider cow as mother as it is an animal like horse and dog."[64]

Notable judgements and opinions

On judiciary

Notes

  1. "The Honourable Chief Justices". Madras High Court. Retrieved 8 April 2013.
  2. "Atheism - Markandey Katju". Facebook. Retrieved 3 August 2016.
  3. "Press Council of India". Presscouncil.nic.in. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
  4. "Hon'ble Mr. Justice Markandey Katju". Retrieved 30 March 2013.
  5. "Former Judges of the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad and its Bench at Lucknow(1900-1990)". Allahabadhighcourt.in. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
  6. "Dr. K.N. Katju". Indianpost.com. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
  7. "Chief Justices of the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad". Allahabadhighcourt.in. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
  8. "Markandey Katju- (Profile)". Aaj ki Khabar. Retrieved 8 April 2013.
  9. "Hon'ble Mr. Justice Markandey Katju". Supremecourtofindia.nic.in. 1946-09-20. Retrieved 2010-10-25.
  10. "HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE MARKANDEY KATJU". PCI. Retrieved 8 April 2013.
  11. "Supreme Court judges take on corruption : The Big Story". India Today. 2011-05-13. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
  12. "Society, law and science". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 19 September 2000.
  13. "Injustice to Urdu in India". The Tribune. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
  14. "Sanskrit As A Language Of Science | Markandey Katju". Outlookindia.com. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
  15. "Kalidas-Ghalib Academy For Mutual Understanding". Kgfindia.com. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
  16. "KGF India". KGF India. 2007-09-06. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
  17. "Looking back at the Caste System". The Hindu. Chennai, India. Archived from the original on 2012-03-18.
  18. "The ideal of women's emancipation". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 18 February 2009.
  19. "Importance of liberty & democracy in India". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 26 January 2009.
  20. "Kalidas Ghalib Foundation". Kgfindia.com. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
  21. "The Hart-Fuller Debate by Justice Markandey Katju – Judge, Allahabad High Court | SIVA-LIZATION". Drsivalaw.wordpress.com. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
  22. "Justice Markandey Katju on the role of media in India". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 5 November 2011.
  23. "The 90%". Indian Express. 9 April 2012.
  24. "Students force Markandey Katju on backfoot over 'fool' remark". Indian Express. 2012-12-10. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
  25. "Markandey Katju clarifies 'fool' remark, says it was made to awaken people to social evils". India Today. 2012-12-10. Retrieved 2013-04-05.
  26. "Salman Rushdie is poor, substandard writer: Justice Katju". Times of India. 25 January 2012.
  27. "Sensationalism in Satanic Verses has hurt Muslims: Katju". 30 January 2012.
  28. "Katju may land in legal trouble - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 2016-10-18.
  29. "Justice Katju gets 'get well soon' card from Odia students | Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis". dna. 2016-10-15. Retrieved 2016-10-18.
  30. "Show us how and where we went wrong in Soumya case: SC to Markandey Katju - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 2016-10-18.
  31. "Supreme Court summons Markandey Katju over Facebook post on Soumya rape case - Firstpost". Firstpost. 2016-10-17. Retrieved 2016-10-18.
  32. "Supreme Court upholds "rotten" remark against Allahabad High Court". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 10 December 2010. Retrieved 30 March 2013.
  33. 1 2 "Justice Markandey Katju: Why his critics remind him of no longer being a judge". The Times of India. 24 February 2013. Retrieved 30 March 2013.
  34. "Govt backs SC on rotten remark". Hindustan Times. 12 December 2010.
  35. "Hang the corrupt, fumes Supreme Court". Times of India. 8 May 2007.
  36. "It will take India 20 years to defeat corruption: Katju". Hindustan Times. 31 March 2013.
  37. Jaitley, Arun. "Why Justice Markandey Katju must quit as the Chairman of the Press Council of India.". Retrieved 7 April 2013.
  38. "Katju and Arun trade blows". The Telegraph. Calcutta, India. 18 February 2013.
  39. "Katju stands firm; Congress, BJP spar". Times of India. 18 February 2013.
  40. "Katju has warned Mamata as a friend, but will her eyes open?". oneIndia news. 13 December 2012.
  41. "Opposition, Press Council chairman Markandey Katju attack 'intolerant' Mamata Banerjee". Economic Times. 13 August 2012.
  42. "Mend your ways or lose power, Markandey Katju tells Mamata Banerjee". Times of India. 29 November 2012.
  43. "Katju calls Mamata 'dictatorial, intolerant, whimsical". DNA. 12 August 2012.
  44. "Zero tolerance". Frontline. August 2012.
  45. "WBHRC asks govt to compensate accused in Mamata cartoon row". Indian Express. 13 August 2012.
  46. "'Think rationally about learning Hindi and it will make sense'".
  47. "Required, two tongues".
  48. http://www.deccanchronicle.com/141111/nation-current-affairs/article/tamils-must-learn-hindi-says-markandey-katju
  49. 1 2 3 "The truth about Pakistan". The Nation. 2 March 2013.
  50. 1 2 3 "Pakistan all-praise for Markandey Katju". Indian Express. 7 March 2013.
  51. "90 per cent of Indians are idiots: Markandey Katju". Indian Express. 8 December 2012. Retrieved 30 March 2013.
  52. "Pakistan a fake country, will reunite with India one day: Katju". Hindustan Times. 7 April 2013.
  53. "India-Pakistan reunification only solution to Kashmir, says Katju". The Hindu. 8 December 2012.
  54. Katju, Markandey (20 July 2014). "How a corrupt Judge continued in the Madras High Court". Satyam Bruyat.
  55. Katju, Markandey (21 July 2014). "How a corrupt judge continued in Madras high court". TOI. Chennai, India.
  56. "Justice Markandey Katju opposes gay relationships, says women primarily a tool for procreation". DNA. 26 December 2014.
  57. "gay relationships and gay marriage". Justice Katju's personal blog. 23 May 2015.
  58. Katju, Markandey (27 February 2013). "Even the chairman has the freedom of speech". The Hindu. Chennai, India.
  59. 1 2 "Fali S Nariman praises Katju for his article critical of Modi". The Economic Times. 2013-02-18.
  60. 1 2 "Jurist Fali S Nariman backs Katju's remarks". Times of India. 2013-02-19.
  61. "Why Justice Katju got Arun Jaitley's goat". Times of India. 20 February 2013.
  62. Singh, Mohit (29 June 2015). "Katju moves Supreme Court against Parliament for resolutions passed against him". 1, Law Street. Retrieved 29 June 2015.
  63. "Cow cannot be anyone's mother, it's just another animal: Markande Katju". Economic Times. Retrieved 4 October 2015.
  64. "I eat beef and don't consider cow as mother, Justice Markandey Katju says". Times of India.
  65. Fali S. Nariman Posted: 5 August 2005 at 0000 hrs IST (2005-08-05). "A judge above contempt". Indianexpress.com. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
  66. "Treat 'honour' killings as rarest of rare cases: court". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 10 May 2011.
  67. "Can't protect minorities, then quit office: SC tells govts [India]". The Times of India. 6 January 2009.
  68. "Bow down before your wife's 'diktat', SC tells husbands [India]". The Times of India. 18 May 2009.
  69. Agencies. "SC judge apologises for 'Taliban' remarks on Muslims". Express India. Retrieved 2010-10-25.
  70. Wisher, Well (2011-08-20). "Prafull Goradia V. Union of India - Secular Judgment to Savor - Reader Blogs on Legally India: Uncut". Legally India. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
  71. "Paper Chase: India Supreme Court finds constitutional right to counsel". JURIST. 2011-02-28. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
  72. "SC: Don't decide case if accused has no lawyer". The Times Of India. 26 February 2011.
  73. "India, largely a country of immigrants Feb 2011".
  74. "Full judgement pdf" (PDF).
  75. "Justice Markandey Katju on the role of media in India".
  76. http://indiankanoon.org/doc/1521881/
  77. "Sex workers also human beings, entitled to a life of dignity, says SC". Indian Express. 2011-02-15. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
  78. "Village common land transfer illegal: Supreme Court". The Times Of India. 1 February 2011.
  79. "Aruna lives, but others can die with dignity". The Times Of India. 8 March 2011.
  80. "Attempt to suicide must be decriminalized: Supreme Court". The Times Of India. 8 March 2011.
  81. Venkatesan, J. (16 March 2011). "Supreme Court appeals to Pakistan to free jailed Indian". The Hindu. Chennai, India.
  82. "Zardari remits jail term of Indian convict | Pakistan". Dawn.Com. 2011-03-27. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
  83. "Cops deserve death for fake encounters". The Times Of India. 14 May 2011.
  84. "Cops behind fake encounters should be hanged, says SC". The Times Of India. 9 August 2011.
  85. "SC judge urges PM to release 80-yr-old Pak murder convict, BJP finds it odd". Times Of India. 17 June 2011.
  86. "Manmohan writes to Chidambaram on Pakistani prisoner". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 20 June 2011.
  87. "SC acquits Pak scientist Mohammed Khalil Chishti of murder charge". The Indian Express. 2012-12-12.
  88. Markandey Katju (2013-02-15). "All the perfumes of Arabia". Chennai, India: The Hindu. Retrieved 2013-04-05.
  89. "I raised the image of judiciary: V.N. Khare". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 2004-05-02.
  90. "I would have lodged an FIR against Narendra Modi on charges of genocide and manslaughter". Hard News Media. March 2012.
  91. PTI 21 Mar 2013, 09.47PM IST (2013-03-21). "Press Council chief Markandey Katju pitches for pardon for Sanjay Dutt". The Times of India. Retrieved 2013-04-05.
  92. Bhushan, Shanti (26 March 2013). "This plot needs a new ending". The Hindu. Chennai, India.
  93. "Sanjay Dutt is not a terrorist, should be pardoned: Justice Katju". Ibnlive.in.com. 2013-03-22.
Wikiquote has quotations related to: Markandey Katju
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/25/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.