CJI hails achievements of outgoing SC judge Rajesh Bindal

Chief Justice of India Surya Kant on Wednesday hailed the achievements of outgoing Supreme Court judge Justice Rajesh Bindal, saying he did not merely performed the “adjudicatory role” as a judge, but also discharged the institutional functions with integrity and had an unparalleled case disposal rate.

Born on April 16, 1961, in Ambala, Justice Bindal began his legal career in 1985 after earning his law degree from the Kurukshetra University and was elevated as a judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court in 2006. He then went on to serve in multiple high courts, including the Jammu and Kashmir HC, Calcutta HC, and Allahabad HC, where he also held positions as the chief justice.

Justice Bindal, who was at number 14 in the seniority, was elevated to the top court on February 13, 2023, and demitting office on April 15, 2026, with over three-year tenure in which he authored over 100 judgements.

With Justice Bindal’s retirement, the total number of vacancies in the top court, having 34 sanctioned posts of judges, becomes two.

Heading the ceremonial bench, which comprised justices Bindal and Joymalya Bagchi, the CJI recalled his decades-long association with the outgoing judge from his advocacy days.

“We have spent a great deal of time together, as you have seen from the record. I have had the privilege of knowing him from very close quarters, even in my earlier professional life. With the passage of time, both of us were often engaged in dealing with tax matters, and later, more focused matters, while I was handling other jurisdictions... He was, of course, known for his integrity and his hard work,” the CJI said.

Justice Kant said he and Justice Bindal had the opportunity to work together on this side of the Bench.

“Both of us, I am told, were known, as rightly pointed out by the learned Attorney General, for our rate of disposal of cases. I could never compete with him, and there was no question of surpassing his record. He was well known for his very fast disposal,” he added.

The CJI said Justice Bindal did not merely performed the “adjudicatory role, but also on the institutional role that a judge must perform”.

“Since his elevation to this court in February 2023, Justice Bindal has authored over 100 judgments. What these judgments reveal, more than any individual outcome, is a judge who consistently attempts to bring the human element to the forefront of systemic issues,” the CJI said.

Justice Bindal was the architect of the MedLEaPR (Medico-Legal Examination and Post-Mortem Reporting System), a software that standardised and secured forensic reports. Initially launched in Punjab, the system was made mandatory for all states by the Centre in 2023 and is now integrated with the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network Systems (CCTNS).

“He believed technology is not just an adjunct to reform, but a vehicle for it,” Justice Kant remarked and wished Justice Bindal well for his retired life.

In his farewell address, Justice Bindal reflected on the responsibilities of the judiciary, offering a stern yet humble perspective on the role of a judge.

“Sometimes people say they have worked hard at the Bar and have come to the Bench to rest. This is not a place to rest,” Justice Bindal said, and referred to huge pendency of cases around five crores in the country. 

“The entire public is looking at you. With over five crore cases pending, the litigant often just wants to be heard. If you hear patiently, you get the facts; and unless facts are clear, the law cannot be applied.”

Reflecting on his journey through four high courts, Punjab & Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Calcutta, and Allahabad, Justice Bindal expressed gratitude for the diverse experience, which he said was instrumental in his role at the apex court.

Attorney General, R Venkataramani, highlighted a staggering statistic from Justice Bindal’s tenure at the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

Over a span of 12 years, Justice Bindal handled approximately 80,000 cases, an average of 6,000 cases per year.

“I thought it was a mere statistic, but no. It is an immense body of work,” the AG said.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta described Justice Bindal as having “the eyes of a good human being yet the demeanour of a very tough judge on the bench”.

Vipin Nair, the President of the Supreme Court Advocates-on-Record Association, also hailed the achievements of Justice Bindal and wished him well on his retirement.