The current CJI has succeeded in restoring public confidence in the judiciary: Mamata

Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday praised the current Chief Justice of India, UU Lalit, and said that he has succeeded in restoring public confidence in the country’s judiciary, as was evident in the past two months.

“I don’t know if this is the right platform to congratulate the present Chief Justice of India, UU Lait. But I must say that public confidence in the judicial system of the country has recovered a lot in the last two months. The court is like a religious place. People knock on the doors of the law in the hope of justice. So it is important that people’s confidence in the judiciary prevails,” the chief minister said while addressing the 14th convocation of the West Bengal National University of Forensic Sciences here on Sunday afternoon.

Chief Justice of India UU Lalit, Chief Justice of Calcutta High Court Prakash Srivastava and Chief Justice of Bangladesh Hasan Foz Siddique attended the event.

In her speech, there was a hidden apprehension about the threats facing India’s federal system of democracy. “Social prestige is everything to us. We lose everything if we lose our social prestige. So I will request everyone associated with the judiciary to ensure that the federal system of democracy prevails,” the chief minister said.

Without directly referring to the Union government and the BJP, the chief minister said that unnecessary harassment of people has increased manifold these days. “All democratic forces have been killed by a section of the people. If this continues, then a presidential form of government may be moved. Where then will democracy prevail? So please protect democracy and that is my only demand,” the chief minister said.

Speaking on the occasion, Mamata Banerjee also launched a scathing attack on the media and said that they often run a parallel process. “This cannot happen. The media cannot dictate the judiciary,” she added.

(IANS)