Flagging issues like ‘adjournment culture’ and long vacations, Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud said on Sunday that the judiciary’s ability to remain relevant as an institution requires it to recognise challenges and begin “difficult conversations”. Chandrachud also stressed on increasing the representation of marginalised sections and providing a level playing field to first-generation lawyers.

The CJI was speaking at a function organised by the Supreme Court on the occasion of the inauguration of the Diamond Jubilee Year of the establishment of the top court in the country. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the chief guest for the occasion.

He also highlighted the demographic changes undergoing in India and said that women, traditionally under-represented in the legal profession, now constitute 36.3% of the working strength of the district judiciary.

The CJI called for the inclusion of diverse sections of the population into the legal profession, noting the representation of SCs and STs “is quite low both at the Bar as well as on the Bench”. “There is a focus on greater inclusion of the marginalised sections of society. Equally inspiring is the confidence of the younger population to succeed in their professional lives,” he added.

He also flagged the structural issues affecting the judiciary, such as the pendency of cases, archaic procedures, and the culture of adjournments, stressing that in the near future, these issues must be addressed. “Our effort in our work as judges and administrators must be to ensure dignity to the district judiciary, which is the first point of contact for citizens,” the CJI said.

The CJI said there is an urgent need to emerge from the adjournment culture to a culture of professionalism. “We have to ensure that the length of oral arguments does not interminably delay judicial outcomes,” he added.

“Let us begin the conversation on long vacations and whether alternatives such as flexitime for lawyers and judges is possible,” the CJI further said.