‘Never Allow Yourself…’: CJI Chandrachud On Why His Father Won’t Let Him Sell Pune Flat

Last Updated:November 10, 2024, 12:59 IST

Justice DY Chandrachud bid farewell to the position of the Chief Justice of India in a heartfelt speech on November 8.

Outgoing Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud bid farewell to his position on November 8 (Friday) in a heartfelt farewell speech following the completion of his two-year term. Before parting ways, Justice Chandrachud shared a story about when his father bought a small flat in Pune and why he didn’t allow his son until he retired.

Justice Chandrachud was succeeded by Justice Sanjiv Khanna, who will be sworn in on Monday. Justice Khanna’s name was proposed by Justice Chandrachud himself or the 51st CJI and he would have a tenure of six months before he retires on May 13, 2025, as Supreme Court judges retire at the age of 65.

At the farewell organised by the Supreme Court Bar Association, the outgoing CJI said,” He (my father) bought this small flat in Pune. I asked him, why on earth are you buying a flat in Pune? When are we going to go and stay there? He said, I know I’m never going to stay there. He said I’m not sure how long I will be with you. But do one thing, keep this flat until the last day of your tenure as a judge.”

“I said, why is that? He said, if you feel that your moral integrity or your intellectual integrity is ever compromised, I want you to know that you have a roof over your head. Never allow yourself to be compromised either as a lawyer or as a judge because you have no place of your own,” he added.

‘I Was A Sick Child, Mother Said…’

He thanked the Supreme Court Bar Association and the lawyers for organising the event in the presence of his family. Remembering his mother, Justice Chandrachud said, “I was a sick child. I was prone to falling sick. My mother must have spent night after night keeping awake to ensure that I get well.”

“I must have heard her innumerable times saying ‘Medicine is like the Ganges and the doctor was in the position of Narayan (god)’… She told me while I was growing up, ‘I have named you Dhananjay, but the ‘dhan’ is not material wealth, I want you to acquire knowledge’,” he added.

The outgoing Chief Justice said his mother, like most Maharashtrian women, was very powerful. “Ours was a woman-dominated house. My mother dominated everything at home. I think women from Odisha are in the same pattern. My lovely spouse Kalpana calls all the shots at home, but never messes around with the judgments,” he said.

CJI Chandrachud On Online Trolls

Justice Chandrachud, who had often been criticised during his term, also commented on online trolls “who will be rendered unemployed” from Monday. “I am, probably, one of the most trolled judges… and on a lighter note, I am wondering what will happen from Monday as all those who trolled me will be rendered unemployed,” he said.

Justice Chandrachud has been criticised by at several occasions for certain public remarks, including the recent one regarding the Ayodhya’s Ram Mandir-Babri Masjid judgment when he said that he had appealed to God to help him with a solution to the long-standing dispute.

The outgoing CJI Holds a BA with Honors in Economics from St. Stephen’s College, New Delhi, an LLB degree from Campus Law Centre, Delhi University and an LLM and SJD from Harvard Law School. He was designated as a Senior Advocate and Additional Solicitor General of India in 1998. His tenure as Chief Justice of India began on November 9, 2022.

(with agency inputs)