Judging not mechanical task, demands empathy, wisdom: Delhi HC Justice C D Singh

New Delhi, Judging is not a mechanical task as it demands empathy, wisdom and judges must remain true to the law, Justice Chandra Dhari Singh on Tuesday shared as he bid farewell to the Delhi High Court upon his transfer to the Allahabad High Court.

Justice Singh, who was appointed as an additional judge of the Allahabad High Court on September 22, 2017, and took oath as a permanent judge in September 2019, was transferred to the Delhi High Court on October 11, 2021.

The Centre notified Justice Singh's repatriation to his parent high court on March 28 following the recommendation of the Supreme Court collegium.

Justice Singh, speaking at a full court reference, said a judge must sometimes harden the heart for justice but must never become indifferent.

"One guiding star for me has been the belief that judges must remain true to the law. Be sensitive to the lives affected by law... At the same time, judging is not a mechanical task. It demands empathy and wisdom... Balancing head and heart are the art of judging. I believe in being open to change in procedure, in thinking and understanding new social realities," he said.

Justice Singh turned emotional earlier while giving a speech at a separate programme organised by the Delhi High Court Bar Association .

Reminiscing "fond memories", Delhi High Court Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya said he and Justice Singh worked together at Allahabad High Court for a long time.

Justice Singh, he said, was known to be a "hard-working" and "relief-giving" judge aside from being a "people's judge".

DHCBA president and senior advocate N Hariharan said Justice Singh's departure for the Delhi High Court came at a time which he described were "trying times for our institution".

"With your transfer back to the Allahabad High Court and the proposed transfer of two other judges, our court faces not merely a reduction in numerical strength, but a moment that calls for deep introspection," he said.

He was referring to the transfers of Justice Yashwant Varma and Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma to High Courts of Allahabad and Calcutta, respectively.

Hariharan said the judiciary, which was once viewed with unquestioning reference, now faced scrutiny, skepticism and sometimes outright cynicism from the public it sought to serve.

"We find ourselves in an era where there is a perceptible erosion of public faith in the legal system as a whole...We at the bar find ourselves increasingly characterised as self serving, callous and mechanical, more concerned with technicalities and fee than with justice and human lives affected by our work," he said.

This dual crisis of confidence is a reality we must acknowledge with both humility and grave concern and must work to dispel this notion, Hariharan added.

"This moment calls upon us to work together with renewed vigour to protect the integrity, reputation and public faith in our legal profession. For the bench, it is a reminder of the profound impact that each judge has on the perception of justice," he said.

The lawyer said it must be demonstrated that the legal profession was not a "cold bureaucracy, but a living, breathing institution".

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