‘Judges are not gods... We will not get every judgment right’: Outgoing SC judge Sanjay Karol

New Delhi: Outgoing Supreme Court judge Justice Sanjay Karol said on Saturday that judges are not infallible and that the responsibility of judging requires humility, empathy and the ability to see the person behind every case.

Justice Karol made the remarks in his farewell address on his last working day at the Supreme Court. The apex court bid an emotional farewell to the judge, with Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and senior members of the Bar, including Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and Supreme Court Bar Association President Pradeep Rai, paying tribute to him.

Reflecting on the responsibility of the judiciary, Justice Karol said the Constitution requires judges not merely to apply the law but to ensure that justice is done.

"The Constitution does not ask us merely to apply the law correctly. It asks us to apply it justly. That is perhaps why the responsibility of judging has always seemed larger to me than simply deciding who is legally correct.

"We, as judges, are not gods. We will not get every judgment right. What was always in our hands was simple: to see the person, not just the petitioner. A petition can only tell you the facts of a case, but it cannot tell you what the person has already lost or what he is hoping to seek from the courts. And perhaps that is why I have always said that judging requires certain level of humility," Justice Karol said.

Justice Karol was elevated to the Supreme Court on February 6, 2023. A ceremonial bench on his final day comprised CJI Kant and Justices Karol, Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana.

‘The courtroom has supported me’

Looking back on nearly four decades in the legal profession, Justice Karol said the courtroom had been much more than a workplace and had helped shape his journey.

"I will not pretend that this journey has been mine alone. This courtroom has not left me; it has supported me," he said.

Justice Karol said he had spent 40 years in courtrooms — first as an advocate and, for the past 19 years, as a judge.

He also emphasised the importance of listening beyond the arguments formally presented before a court, pointing to what he described as the "eloquent silences" within courtrooms.

"In the silence of the Bar, there is a way of listening," he said, stressing that judicial proceedings are not only about the arguments lawyers make but also about what litigants seek "in the spaces between the words".

From the height of the bench to the weight of responsibility

Recalling his first visit to Supreme Court courtroom No. 1 in 1996, Justice Karol said the Bench had appeared to him to be nearly six feet above the ground.

"Judging from there has taught me something about this courtroom's symbolism. From below, the height of the bench can appear to signify authority. From the comfort zone, it signifies something quite different, and that is responsibility with dignity and honesty," he said.

Justice Karol said the Supreme Court's real significance lies in the faith of ordinary citizens who enter its doors believing that they will be heard.

"But we must also remember those who never reach those doors because justice is too distant, too expensive, too intimidating," he said.

Reflecting on constitutionalism and justice, Justice Karol said concepts such as law, due process and constitutional legality could be understood through the idea of "dharma", which he described as duty rather than ritual.

"The duty of a judge is to respect justice and see that the person standing before the court, however small, however wretched, is seen and heard," he said.

Addressing lawyers, Justice Karol said the principles associated with judging extend beyond courtrooms and judicial robes. He said every individual makes choices involving conduct, responsibility and the exercise of power.

"There may be no courtrooms, no robes, no technical grounds, but in these small choices, each of us dispenses the measure of justice that we take," he said.

"A judge is a judge before he dons and after he takes off the robes," he added.

Referring to a point made by the CJI a day earlier, Justice Karol said India not only has a living Constitution but must also practise its constitutional values in everyday life.

"The greatness of our Constitution is tested not only in great cases. It is tested in ordinary conduct," he said.

Concluding his address, Justice Karol said he was returning to what he described as "the most distinguished constitutional office" — that of an ordinary citizen.

Born on August 23, 1961, Justice Karol studied in Shimla and obtained his law degree from Himachal Pradesh University.

He became advocate general of Himachal Pradesh in 1998 and served in the position until 2003. He was designated a senior advocate in 1999 and appointed a judge of the Himachal Pradesh High Court on March 8, 2007.

He became Chief Justice of the Tripura High Court in November 2018 before being transferred as Chief Justice of the Patna High Court in November 2019. He was elevated to the Supreme Court on February 6, 2023.