New Delhi:
Supreme Court judge Justice Abhay S Oka said ahead of his retirement that a judge has to be firm and “be able to offend”, adding that he had been harsh only to follow the Constitution.
During ceremonial proceedings marking his last working day on Friday, Justice Oka said, “I may have offended two lawyers but I believe that a judge has to be very firm and should be able to offend. One great judge has advised me that you are not becoming a judge to become popular. I followed that to hilt and I was harsh only to follow the constitution.”
Justice Oka expressed hope that the Supreme Court will continue to uphold Constitutional liberties, Bar and Bench reported.
The proceedings came a day after he travelled to Mumbai after his mother passed away. “Despite such an irreparable loss you treated duty as a judge first. You could have addressed virtually also,” said Solicitor General Tushar Mehta.
Justice Oka also said that he “hates the word retirement” and had decided to hear as many matters as possible since January. On his last working day, he delivered 11 verdicts.
Earlier, at a farewell function organised for him by the Supreme Court Advocates-on-Record Association (SCAORA) on May 21, Justice Oka said that he does not agree with the tradition of the retiring judges not working on their last working day.
Justice Oka was born on May 25, 1960. He did his law from University of Bombay and enrolled as an advocate in June 1983. He started practising before Thane District Court in the chamber of his father Shreeniwas W Oka.
In 1985-86, he joined the chamber of VP Tipnis, a former Judge of the Bombay High Court and former LokAyukta. He was elevated as Additional Judge of the Bombay High Court on August 29, 2003 was made a a permanent judge on November 12, 2005.
He took oath as the Chief Justice of Karnataka High Court on May 10, 2019 where he served until he was elevated to the Supreme Court of India on August 31, 2021.
