Justice Karol’s contribution through judgments wide-ranging, substantial: CJI Surya Kant

22/08/2026

NEW DELHI, Aug 21: Chief Justice of India Surya Kant on Friday lauded the "impressive body of judicial work" of outgoing Supreme Court judge Justice Sanjay Karol and said his contrib-ution through his judgments is both "wide-ranging and substantial".
Speaking at a function organised by the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) to bid farewell to Justice Karol who is set to demit office on August 22, the CJI said he always encour-aged the parties before him to try to settle and find common ground for mutual agreement.
"Finally, I would be remiss not to dedicate a part of my address to his (Justice Karol) impressive body of judicial work that he leaves behind. His contribution through his judgments is both wide-ranging and substantial," he said.
"And if you read his opinions closely, you will also find a judge who is deeply compassionate and acutely aware of social realities," the CJI said.
He said in criminal law, Justice Karol's decisions reflected a careful balance between the legitimate interests of society and the constitutional promise of fairness to the accused.
He said for Justice Karol, justice has never just meant that every dispute must have a winner and a loser.
"He has always been attentive to the growth and nurturing of the young members of the bar, and who knows better than these youngsters, many of whom had the advantage of working as an amicus in his court," the CJI said.
He said Justice Karol continues to remain an amiable and remarkable down-to-earth person who has carried a deep and abiding regard for each of the values that define the judicial office.
"What are those values? Impartiality, integrity, independence and humility," the CJI said.
Referring to how Justice Karol conducted his court, the CJI said, "Anyone who has appeared before him, many of you must have appeared, knows that his courtroom has never been an intimidating place."
He said Justice Karol's courtroom was always treated as a space for dialogue rather than confrontation.
"Even when the disagreements were sharp between the parties, he ensured that every party leaves in the sense that they have been heard properly and that their disputes will be resolved with fairness," he said.
"On behalf of my colleagues on the bench, I thank you for your companionship and your institutional commitment, and above all, for reminding us that firmness and kindness are not opposites but complementary in judging," the CJI said.
In his address, Justice Karol, who was elevated as a judge of the Supreme Court on February 6, 2023, recalled his journey to the apex court.
He said the past three-and-a-half-year period as a judge of the top court has been "action-packed" and "demanding".
"I would very strongly request the Bar that our (judges') strength lies from the Bar... If at all there is a custodian of the justice delivery system, it is the Bar. Judges come and judges go," Justice Karol said.
"And also I would say that the stronger the Bar, the stronger the Bench," he said.
Attorney General R Venkataramani, SCBA president and senior advocate Pradeep Rai and others also addressed the gathering.
Born on August 23, 1961, Justice Karol did his schooling from Shimla and obtained a degree in Law at the Himachal Pradesh University.
He was appointed as the advocate general of Himachal Pradesh in 1998 and served in that capacity till 2003.
He was conferred the designation of senior advocate in 1999 and was elevated as a judge of the Himachal Pradesh High Court on March 8, 2007.
Justice Karol was elevated as the Chief Justice of the Tripura High Court in November 2018 and was later transferred to the Patna High Court in November 2019.

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