‘It is time for me to rediscover’: Justice Shah on retirement

Supreme Court justice Mukeshkumar Rasikbhai Shah, who sat on the Constitution bench that decided on the contentious Delhi-Centre power tussle for control over the bureaucracy and the rift within the Shiv Sena, retired on Monday, delivering a record 700-plus judgments in his 54-month stint at the top court.

“I call him Tiger Shah,” Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud said at his farewell function, recollecting how his brother judge, as part of the collegium, was instrumental in helping him with mature, practical advice on how to work with the government on judicial appointments.

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“He was a solid colleague, full of practical wisdom, mature, grounded and middle of the road advice and how to tackle others, whether this side or the other side,” the CJI said, speaking at the event organised by the Supreme Court Bar Association in honour of justice Shah.

Justice Shah was elevated to the Supreme Court in 2018 and on November 9 last year, when justice Chandrachud became the CJI, entered the collegium, which consists of five senior-most judges who recommend judges for the Supreme Court.

The CJI said he appreciated justice Shah’s willingness to take up all work, eagerness to write judgments and ability to always learn. “Even the recent constitution bench judgment was returned in less than 48 hours to me with annotations at the bottom,” the CJI said.

The CJI further revealed that the decision to have “paperless” court proceedings in the Delhi-Centre matter led him to initiate justice Shah to the laptop. “I could see justice Shah on my right and justice Krishna Murari on my left, working furiously on their laptops,” he said.

Justice Shah during his stint in the Supreme Court achieved the rare feat of writing 712 judgments, with CJI Chandrachud a distant second with 552 judgments to his name, said bar association vice-president Pradeep Rai.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, justice Shah was instrumental in pursuing state governments to provide Covid compensations for families who lost their dear ones to the deadly coronavirus. It was a bench comprising justice Shah that waived off compound interest charged by banks on loans during the moratorium announced by lenders after lockdown was declared in the country in March 2020.

“I have lost so many things during this journey as a judge, but I have no regrets. It is time for me to rediscover as I am just 65 years old,” Justice Shah said.

“Prior to my elevation to the Supreme Court, I had never entered the court except on one occasion,” added justice Shah, who is the first judge in his family. He had a flourishing legal practice at Gujarat high court, his parent high court where he became a judge in March 2004. In August 2018, he became chief justice of Patna high court before his elevation to the top court.

Adorning the ceremonial bench earlier in the day with CJI Chandrachud and justice PS Narasimha, justice Shah broke down while reciting a couplet from Raj Kapoor-starrer Mera Naam Joker on his last day in office.

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Known as a no-nonsense judge who effected speedy disposal of cases by keeping a strict stance against grant of adjournments, justice Shah also courted controversy during his tenure for openly praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a function organized in Gujarat. He described Modi as “our most loved, vibrant and visionary leader” at the diamond jubilee function of the Gujarat high court in February 2021.

Justice Shah also presided over the bench that held an urgent sitting on a Saturday in October to stay the release of former Delhi University professor GN Saibaba in a case where he was arrested for alleged Maoist links. In April, the bench headed by justice Shah ordered the matter for fresh consideration by the Bombay high court.

Justice Shah’s repartees and wit made his court lively. The CJI recalled his courage and fighting spirit in recovering from a heart attack last year. “God helped me whenever I was in trouble,” justice Shah remarked.