Justice Sanjiv Khanna, on his final day as the Chief Justice of India, shed light on key aspects of his legal career, challenges, and achievements in his farewell speech and said that the true strength was in prioritising the institutionтАЩs interest over external validation.
CJI Sanjiv Khanna will be succeeded by Justice BR Gavai, who will be sworn-in on Wednesday, May 14.
In his farewell speech, CJI Khanna said that as the Chief Justice of India, the weight of responsibility and constant public scrutiny came with the role. However, he found that by staying focused on both the judicial and administrative aspects of work, he could manage both the responsibility and the spotlight.
“True strength, I realised, lies in discharging oneтАЩs duties with equanimity, always prioritising the institutionтАЩs best interests over external validation,” the outgoing CJI said at the farewell event organised by the Supreme Court Bar Association.
He added that his focus was clear. First, to address arrears, improve the ease of filing and listing cases, and identify dormant or infructuous matters. “Transparency was a key priority, along with implementing a data-driven strategy to tackle the growing pendency of cases,” the CJI said.
CJI Khanna also revealed during the event that the top court achieved a case clearance rate of 106 per cent after several years, adding that this means that the court disposed of more cases than were filed.
“As per Centre for Research and Planning, from November 2024- April 2025 it reviewed over 10,000 pending Supreme Court cases, identifying and classifying 3,374 main matters and 901 connected matters. Of these, 2,401 main and 850 connected matters were listed, resulting in the disposal of 1,342 main and 189 connected matters in just one or two hearings,” the CJI said.
The CJI also hoped that the day is not far away when mediation would be preferred over litigation as the default mode of resolution of disputes.
“Today we are witnessing a sea of change in the legal profession. The courtroom dynamics are shifting from being driven by oratory skills to being shaped by subject-matter expertise. As preparation stand rise, it is essential for the bar to focus becoming domain experts,” he said.
CJI-designate, Justice Gavai, who also spoke on the occasion, heaped praise on CJI Khanna for always speaking his mind. “Your tenure will not be remembered not only for judicial strides but also the humility with which he carried the responsibilities of such a high office”.
With PTI inputs