Rajasthan High Court’s outgoing Chief Justice Akil Kureshi on Saturday said that the government’s “negative perception” about him was a certificate of his judicial independence, PTI reported.

Kureshi, 61, made the remarks during his farewell speech to the members of the bar and bench of the Rajasthan High Court on his last day in office. He will be replaced by Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava, who will take charge as the acting chief justice from March 7, according to The Indian Express.

His remarks were in reference to the observations made by former Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi in his autobiography on the appointment of Kureshi as the chief justice of Tripura instead of Madhya Pradesh in 2019.

“It is stated that the government had some negative perceptions about me based on my judicial opinions,” Justice Kureshi said, without naming Gogoi. “As a judge of the constitutional court whose most primary duty is to protect the fundamental and human rights of the citizens, I consider it a certificate of independence.”

Justice Kureshi added that he is leaving with his “pride intact” and “conscience clear” as he made all his judicial decisions without being swayed by its consequences.

In 2019, the collegium had recommended that Kureshi become the chief justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court. Widely seen to be disliked by the Modi government because of two key verdicts given by him against the dispensation in 2010 and 2011, the Centre sent back the recommendation.

The collegium could have, as per law, forced the government to accept its suggestion. However, it instead transferred Kureshi to the Tripura High Court, one of the smallest high courts in the country.

In 2010, Justice Kureshi had ruled that then Gujarat Home Minister and current Union Home Minister Amit Shah should be sent to the custody of the Central Bureau of Investigation as an accused in the murder of Sohrabuddin Sheikh. Shah was later acquitted of the murder charges in December 2014.

Next year, he had upheld the then Gujarat Governor Kamla Beniwal’s decision to appoint former High Court judge RA Mehta as the state’s Lokayukta, a decision that was opposed by Narendra Modi who was then the chief minister, The Indian Express reported.

In 2021, despite being the second most senior judge in India, Kureshi’s name was left out from the nine names sent in by the Supreme Court collegium for appointment as judges of the Supreme Court.

On Saturday, Kureshi had also spoken about the state of the judiciary in the country. He said that the very reason for the existence of courts was to protect the rights of citizens.

“Far more than any direct affronts, it is stealthy encroachment on democratic values and rights of the citizens which should worry us,” he said, according to PTI.

Further, he pointed out the shortages of judges in courts and said that judges in the country are overworked. He also expressed surprise at the Supreme Court’s pruning lists of advocates for appointment to High Courts.

“When I joined, there were 36 judges in my High Court,” he said. “I do not think this number has been crossed since. During this period, work has increased manifold. It puts an inhuman burden on the judges and it has its burnout effect.”

Also read:Supreme Court collegium’s decision on Justice Kureshi does not augur well for judicial independence