People of India are the guardians of the Constitution and in turn, judiciary will protect their rights as per the Constitution, Supreme Court judge Justice CT Ravikumar said on Friday..Justice Ravikumar was speaking at a farewell function organized in his honour by the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA). He retires on January w5. "Often times we used to say, judiciary is the guardian of the Constitution. Then the question is, who should be the guardian of the judiciary? It should be we the people of India as it is we who gave this Constitution to us. I am sure that the judiciary will be protected by the people of India and the judiciary will, in turn, safeguard and protect them with the aid of Constitution," he said..The top court judge also said that when there is a judgment of public importance, there should be a constructive criticism regarding the same."While on criticism, I should quote 'I disapprove of what you say but I will defend to the death your right to say it'. If any criticism is made imbibing this spirit, certainly it can only be constructive criticism which will definitely help in development of law," he remarked..Justice Ravikumar, who was appointed a judge of Kerala High Court in 2008 and then elevated to the top court in 2021, expressed great satisfaction at his tenure."Time has come to bid adieu. I feel great satisfaction but it is for you to say whether it was satisfactory or not," he said.Justice Ravikumar also recalled his oath as a judge and said he would continue to follow it after his retirement."At the time when I sworn in, I said I will not be doing anything to shatter the confidence of the people in this judiciary. I will repeat it after demitting the office also. I will not be doing anything to shatter the confidence of the people in this institution because ultimately, it is the institution which is the guardian of law. I will continue to respect this institution and the law and I will continue as a law building citizen," he said..Justice Ravikumar also made an appeal to lawyers to act patiently when a judge questions them during the hearing of their case. "When we say judge should be patient, what about the lawyer? Even they should be patient. Do not think judge is to oppose you. We are there to listen and questions are to pick what is there."He also commented on the practice of lawyers seeking adjournment of cases."Another thing is adjournments and we do grant it. Adjournments should be utilized to read the same thing twice, thrice and be better prepared"
