A look at the entire tale amid discussions of the Gandhis' feud, from Justice HR Khanna's position on "Emergency" to Justice DY Chandrachud's commendation
At a quick swearing-in ceremony on Monday at Rashtrapati Bhavan, Justice Sanjiv Khanna was sworn in as India's 51st Chief Justice. He takes over from Justice D Y Chandrachud, who resigned on Sunday.In addition to Chandrachud and President Droupadi Murmu, who administered the oath, other attendees included former Chief Justice JS Khehar, Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, and Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal.
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) blamed Rahul Gandhi's absence more than anyone else, citing his grandmother and India's former prime minister, the late Indira Gandhi, as the reason why CJI Khanna's uncle, Justice HR Khanna, had lost the top position.
Here's the whole tale.
JUSTICE HR KHANNA: WHO WAS SHE?
Justice Hans Raj Khanna was born in 1912 and served in the Delhi and Punjab High Courts before being appointed as a district and sessions judge in 1952. He joined the Supreme Court as a judge in 1971, and in 1977, he was a candidate for Chief Justice of India.
Here's the whole tale.
JUSTICE HR KHANNA: WHO WAS SHE?
Justice Hans Raj Khanna was born in 1912 and served in the Delhi and Punjab High Courts before being appointed as a district and sessions judge in 1952. He joined the Supreme Court as a judge in 1971, and in 1977, he was a candidate for Chief Justice of India.
WHAT WAS THE CASE OF ADM JABALPUR?
On Indira Gandhi's orders, President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed banned fundamental rights under Article 359 during the Emergency era (1975–1977). This resulted in a number of people who opposed the Emergency being detained under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA), including Moraji Desai, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Jayprakash Narayan, and LK Advani, in some cases without being tried or charged. One of the arrested political activists, Shivkant Shukla, contested the action, which resulted in the ADM Jabalpur vs. Shivkant Shukla case, also referred to as the Habeas Corpus case.
The Indira Gandhi administration petitioned the Supreme Court after the High Courts decided that citizens could still petition the court.
On Indira Gandhi's orders, President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed banned fundamental rights under Article 359 during the Emergency era (1975–1977). This resulted in a number of people who opposed the Emergency being detained under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA), including Moraji Desai, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Jayprakash Narayan, and LK Advani, in some cases without being tried or charged. One of the arrested political activists, Shivkant Shukla, contested the action, which resulted in the ADM Jabalpur vs. Shivkant Shukla case, also referred to as the Habeas Corpus case.
The Indira Gandhi administration petitioned the Supreme Court after the High Courts decided that citizens could still petition the court.
Chief Justice AN Ray and Justices MH Beg, YV Chandrachud, PN Bhagwati, and HR Khanna were among the Supreme Court bench members who debated whether a presidential order under Article 395 (1) of the Constitution suspends a person's right to petition any court for the enforcement of their Article 21 right to liberty while they are being held under a law that allows for preventive detention.
The position of Justice HR Khanna
With a 4:1 majority, the five-judge constitution bench—which is appointed to hear matters involving significant constitutional interpretation—ruled that citizens had no right to seek legal recourse in times of emergency. Justice HR Khanna was the only one to voice dissent.
Justice Khanna spoke in favor of protecting individual liberty, saying that the rights to life and liberty must be upheld even in emergency situations.
"In view of his submissions, would there be any remedy if a police officer, out of personal enmity, killed another man?" Justice Khanna said during the hearing.
"It may shock your conscience, it may shock mine, but consistent with my submissions, no proceedings can be taken in a court of law on that score," Attorney General Niren De retorted.
"Detention without trial is an anathema to all those who love personal liberty," stated Justice Khanna.
With a 4:1 majority, the five-judge constitution bench—which is appointed to hear matters involving significant constitutional interpretation—ruled that citizens had no right to seek legal recourse in times of emergency. Justice HR Khanna was the only one to voice dissent.
Justice Khanna spoke in favor of protecting individual liberty, saying that the rights to life and liberty must be upheld even in emergency situations.
"In view of his submissions, would there be any remedy if a police officer, out of personal enmity, killed another man?" Justice Khanna said during the hearing.
"It may shock your conscience, it may shock mine, but consistent with my submissions, no proceedings can be taken in a court of law on that score," Attorney General Niren De retorted.
"Detention without trial is an anathema to all those who love personal liberty," stated Justice Khanna.
Justice Hans Raj Khanna subsequently recounted in his memoirs, "On the night before Baisakhi, that is, on the night of April 12, we were sitting in the moonlight in the bungalow's compound while the Ganges flowed in front of us, serene and beautiful." I informed my younger sister, "Santosh, I have prepared a judgment which is going to cost me the Chief Justiceship of India," as I sat there and watched the scene.
The New York Times stated in a 1976 article that "someone will surely erect a monument to Justice HR Khanna of the Supreme Court if India ever finds a way back to the freedom and democracy that were proud hallmarks of its first eighteen years as an independent nation."
He was denied the top legal position by Indira Gandhi.
The New York Times stated in a 1976 article that "someone will surely erect a monument to Justice HR Khanna of the Supreme Court if India ever finds a way back to the freedom and democracy that were proud hallmarks of its first eighteen years as an independent nation."
He was denied the top legal position by Indira Gandhi.
The senior-most judge, Justice HR Khanna, was replaced as Chief Justice I (CJI) by Justice MH Beg in 1977 as Chief Justice AN Ray's term came to an end under the Indira Gandhi-led government. After hearing the decision on the radio, Justice Khanna resigned that same day.
He was named head of the Law Commission, a post he maintained until 1979, following the conclusion of the 21-month Emergency and the overthrow of Indira Gandhi's government. Under Prime Minister Charan Singh, he also briefly held the position of minister of law and justice until resigning three days later. Justice Khanna was the opposition's nominee for president in 1982, but Zail Singh defeated him.
As part of a nine-judge Supreme Court bench, Justice DY Chandrachud overruled his father, YV Chandrachud's, ruling in the ADM case in 2017, affirming that the right to privacy is a fundamental right.
"The view taken by Justice Khanna must be accepted, and accepted in reverence for the strength of its thoughts and the courage of its convictions," he said, praising Justice HR Khanna's dissent.
He was named head of the Law Commission, a post he maintained until 1979, following the conclusion of the 21-month Emergency and the overthrow of Indira Gandhi's government. Under Prime Minister Charan Singh, he also briefly held the position of minister of law and justice until resigning three days later. Justice Khanna was the opposition's nominee for president in 1982, but Zail Singh defeated him.
As part of a nine-judge Supreme Court bench, Justice DY Chandrachud overruled his father, YV Chandrachud's, ruling in the ADM case in 2017, affirming that the right to privacy is a fundamental right.
"The view taken by Justice Khanna must be accepted, and accepted in reverence for the strength of its thoughts and the courage of its convictions," he said, praising Justice HR Khanna's dissent.
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