The Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud on Thursday recalled the legacy of Fali S Nariman, stating that the late jurist, whom he described as a person of towering intellect, always advocated for the creation of a just and inclusive society.
Speaking to Media on the legacy of the Fali Nariman who passed away a day ago, the CJI said, “He represented the conscience of a citizen dedicated entirely to the pursuit of liberty and justice. His life straddled time and his life straddled generations. But in everything that he did, he spoke and acted and conducted himself with fearlessness and candour.”
“For him, above all, it was not just the pursuit of legal principle that was of importance, but the impact, which legal principle has had on the creation of a just, inclusive, and diverse society,” he added
The Chief Justice said that several generations of lawyers, including himself, had been mentored by the larger than life jurist, who always remained humble.
The CJI further added that “Generations of lawyers of judges have been mentored by him, and I belong to that category as well. But above all, despite his own scholarship, his learning, and his own quest for excellence in his professional life, Mr Nariman never lost his sense of humanity, his sense of humour, and that really took place in everything that he did,” he said
The Chief Justice also recalled the late jurist’s penchant for writing letters and he himself had received a letter a few days prior to the demise of the legal luminary
“At 95, he would write letters to all of us. I received a letter from him just a few days ago, and I didn’t realize that that was going to be the last that he wrote to me. Truly, we have lost a towering intellect, a great human being, and above all, a great citizen,” the Chief Justice said.
The senior advocate passed away at the age of 95 in New Delhi on Wednesday. The former Additional Solicitor General of India died at his residence in the early hours of the day.
Fali Nariman was born to a Parsi family in Myanmar on January 10, 1929. He started his law practice at the Bombay High Court in 1950.
The constitutional lawyer and jurist received the Padma Bhushan in 1991 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2007.
Nariman was also a President-appointee member of the Rajya Sabha between 1999 and 2005.