Chief Justice of India SA Bobde and senior members of the Bar bid farewell to Justice Arun Mishra, who retired as a judge of the Supreme Court on Monday, 2 September.
As per tradition, Justice Mishra shared the Bench with CJI Bobde on his last working day.
In a short farewell speech, Justice Mishra said that whatever he could do "came from the supreme powers of this court". He said,
“I always tried to borrow the weapon of power given to me by my learned brothers. All of you were the power behind whatever I have done.”
Paying tribute to the Bar, he said,
“I have learnt so much from the members of the Bar. So many branches of law I have learnt from the Bar members. You can master the facts but there are so many local laws... And interpretation of those by lawyers.”
Justice Arun Mishra said that over the course of his career as a judge, he has "dealt with every case with his conscience".
“Sometimes I have been very harsh in my conduct directly or indirectly. Nobody should feel hurt. Analyse every judgment and don’t colour it this way or that way. If I have hurt anybody then please pardon me, pardon me, pardon me.”Justice Arun Mishra
Referring to the Prashant Bhushan contempt case that he heard and decided, Justice Mishra stated,
"...even in the last case of contempt, AG said that he didn't want any punishment (for Prashant Bhushan) but.....".
CJI Bobde remarked that it was the very first time that he and Justice Mishra were sitting together, and would be the last time too. He said,
“It has been a privilege to have Justice Arun Mishra as a colleague. It is a peculiar thing that this is the first time I am sitting with him in court and this happens to be his last time. You have been a beacon of courage and fortitude in discharging your duties.”
Attorney General KK Venugopal, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, Supreme Court Bar Association President Dushyant Dave and Supreme Court Advocates-on-Record Association President Shivaji Jadhav were among the lawyers logged in to Court 1 to address Justice Mishra on his last day in office.
While AG Venugopal addressed Justice Mishra as the "iron judge of the Supreme Court," other law officers wished him well for his "second innings." The AG said,
“It is disappointing that this farewell is done through video conferencing. We are hoping he will be in Delhi, after all, he is only 65 years of age. I have had a good relationship with Justice Mishra for the last 30 years. He is the iron judge of the Supreme Court. We will miss him in Supreme Court and we wish him good health.”AG Venugopal
(This piece was originally published in Bar and Bench and has been republished with permission.)
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