Justice Suryakant said on the eve of constitution day, that constitutional morality is a concept while difficult to define at times. The first citation of this concept predates our time by nearly fifty years, when justices A.N. Ray and Jagan Mohan Reddy first floated the notion of constitutional morality in one of the most celebrated adjudications, the Kesavananda Bharti case.
Justice Suryakant delivering his speech at ‘Legally speaking’ lecture series. It’s first Lecture was held at the occasion of launching of Legally Speaking website and application.
The conclave’s objective is to invite thought leaders, eminent judges, intellectuals, and parliamentarians to talk about Constitution Day, which is celebrated on November 26th.
The inaugural commenced with the lighting up of the lamp by Justice Suryakant, Rajya Sabha MP and chairman of Itv Chairman Kartikeya Sharma Along with Tarun Nangia and Ashish Kumar Sinha. Just After it Mr. Kartikeya Sharma remarked in his address that the Legally speaking was started 6-years-ago and it has exponentially expanded.
Speaking at the lecture series, Justice Surya Kant said, ‘I was asked to speak on the Constitution’s morality and also on the law and media, so I will begin with my point of view on constitutional morality. It is a concept that, while difficult to define at times, has been heard and invoked on several occasions in a series of important constitutional interpretation decisions. The first citation of this concept predates our time by nearly fifty years, when justices A.N. Ray and Jagan Mohan Reddy first floated the notion of constitutional morality in one of the most celebrated adjudications, the Kesavananda Bharti case. The thirst for constitutional morality in Kesavananda Bharti appears to be expressed in terms of adherence to democratic values.”
“As we know, the constitution is the foremost document that seeks and works to uphold democracy, the rule of law, and the fundamental rights of the citizen. The importance of constitutional morality was also repeatedly mentioned in NCT Delhi vs. Union of India, where different opinions were offered by different judges, referring to constitutional morality as a check upon the state functionaries and the citizens. The general idea of constitutional morality that has emerged over time is one that seeks to uphold values that are claimed to be upheld in our constitution. While these values may be traced to Part 3 of the Constitution, it appears that there could be other sources from which the Constitution’s morality is derived. Undoubtedly, in the speech of Baba Sahib Ambedkar, he mentioned that part of constitutional morality is forward-looking; it seeks to transform Indian society into a state and institutions that are committed to democratic ideas and goals,” he added.
“We are driven by self-sufficiency, traditional values, and progressive values can’t be in conflict,” he added.
He said, “The media is under a responsibility to report the truth and ensure that it adheres to the highest tenants of good faith, integrity, and propriety. The state of legal reporting itself has grown by leaps and bounds, starting from the Indian Law Reports Act, 1875, to the present date. With numerous databases and legal news websites, our ability to convey the specifics of law has remarkably improved.” “ It is way to keep track of what is happening to the Lower Courts at times important legal ailments that have an impact, through reporting websites only, the pending cases are discovered now please I have tried to say that there is a reason as I understand is a form of art anything that tears our senses is heart mind and soul can be defined as art and so to an extent journalism can also be considered as an art form some may not fully agree with the notion of the basis that all what the journalist does is to deliver the facts however herein lies the key the way what delivers the fact makes the difference. The media is a way to keep track of what is happening in the Supreme Court and the lower courts,” he added.
Justice Suryakant further added, “Let’s remember that time when India was emerging from colonialism and marching towards becoming a fully functional democratic state. The constitution was therefore meant to act as a stimulant to propel the country forward in its search for the appropriate balance between its many conflicting obligations. The key point that must be reconsidered is that once a nation has achieved such a goal that it no longer requires transformative forward-looking policy, it appears that a visionary like Baba Sahib Ambedkar never intended to stop and be satisfied once the goal of democratization of society was attained. A country must constantly transform and rework to adapt to the changing world. Social and economic concepts and ideas regarding what constitutes a healthy and pluralistic society will perpetually change as time goes on. One component of constitutional morality is the progress and betterment of society. However, here is where I draw a small but crucial distinction: constitutional morality, even if we move forward and seek the members of society who have unfortunately been down for decades, cannot remain diverse from the society which it seeks to represent. A constitutional can only be aspirational. It cannot be obvious to the realities of the world. But what I wish to say is that the constitution acts as a medium for the betterment of the people and helps people pursue the goal that we have laid down for them.’
Justice Surya Kant elucidated ‘Law and media are part of the same mosaic and are fundamental to a healthy society. The purpose of this conclave is to provide the best legal editorial law reports, legal policy updates, law firm news, and the most recent court updates.
