Top dignitaries converged at the “Ram Jethmalani Memorial Lecture” to discuss justice delivery advancements and to award journalists for their contribution to the legal field and service to humanity.
The event was graced by the presence of Chief Justice of India (CJI) D.Y. Chandrachud and Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal who shared their visions on enhancing transparency and efficiency in justice delivery systems. Central to the discussion was the embracement of technology in facilitating court proceedings, a move reinforced by the Supreme Court’s recent integration with the National Judicial Data Grid.
CJI Chandrachud emphasised his commitment to elevate the process of Supreme Court judge appointments by leveraging a broader assessment platform for potential candidates. This initiative aims to foster a transparent and data-driven approach to appointments, moving away from criticisms of a lack of factual basis in the selection process. A centre dedicated to research and planning aids this endeavour, scrutinising the judgments and performances of the top 50 judges in the country.
The Law Minister echoed the efforts of the judiciary, sharing his pride in the Supreme Court’s global recognition for settling a substantial number of cases via video conferencing.
In the midst of the discourse on judicial advancements, the event became the venue for the distribution of the inaugural “Will of Steel Awards,” conceived to honour the birth centenary of legendary jurist Ram Jethmalani. Aditya Raj Kaul, Executive Editor of TV9 Network, bagged the highest honour, the Jethmalani Prize for Journalism in Service to Humanity, along with a purse of Rs 14,00,000 ($17,000).
Other awardees included Team Bar and Bench, who clinched the award for legal journalism, and Hina Rohtaki, Special Correspondent at Indian Express, recognized for empowerment. Both accolades carried a citation scroll and a purse of Rs 1,11,000 ($1,400).
The celebration, reflecting the continuous efforts towards a more transparent judiciary, fittingly paid tribute to Jethmalani’s rich legacy in bolstering democratic institutions, endorsing a discourse that lauded the foundational principle of transparency in governance and the judiciary.
With this development, the nation watches as the apex court takes confident strides towards nurturing democracy and transparency, in tandem with honouring journalistic excellence in bringing these narratives.