40 Madras Law Journal – Article (2024) 4 MLJMADRAS TO MEGHALAYA: FAREWELL TO JUSTICE S. VAIDYANATHAN[By : Amrith Bhargav and Abhirame K, Advocates, Madras High Court]
40 Madras Law Journal – Article (2024) 4 MLJ
MADRAS TO MEGHALAYA: FAREWELL TO JUSTICE S. VAIDYANATHAN
[By : Amrith Bhargav and Abhirame K, Advocates, Madras High Court]
August 16th, 2024 witnesses the retirement of Justice S. VAIDYANATHAN as Chief Justice of the Meghalaya High Court after his elevation in February 2024. Recounting a long and eventful tenure of more than a decade, his judgeship has been a period of impartial dispensation of justice with an impetus for public service. A journey that began in Villivakkam, once upon a time a suburb of Chennai, culminated in his being appointed as a Judge of the Madras High Court on Oct 25th, 2013 and he now joins a long list of distinguished judges who have adorned the Bench of the Madras High Court.
His life as a first generation lawyer began at M/s Row & Reddy, where he was fed with the passion for helping those in need and heeding to the call of unexpecting service moulded him into a labour law specialist. His case law referencer was famous and he even made an e-version of the same under the auspices of the Madras Book Agency, which was founded by his father in 1956.Aman of simplicity and candour his desire for all round welfare found expression on various occasions.
(2024) 4 MLJ Farewell to Justice S. Vaidyanathan 41
He preferred keeping an open house most of his tenure and genuine requests always made way to his ears somehow. He kept his work as his sacred calling and reflected on each day as they passed during these ten years. Justice VAIDYANATHAN emphasised on theimportanceofreasoninjudgmentwritingandwaswillingtochangeorrevisithisorders if proper grounds were demonstrated. His encouragement of juniors at the Bar is well known and he always found a way to acknowledge their work or preparation in cases and never left them demotivated. Conscious of the high constitutional office that he occupied, he was devoted to the institutional sanctity of judging and strived to maintain a high standard of judicial contribution to the march of law. He was at utter ease in the service roster, general miscellaneous, tax writs and even the Division Bench on Income Tax cases. He was never shy of seeking assistance from the learned members of theBarandoftenexpressedhiszestforlearningnewconceptsofthelawfromadvocates present there. He was alive to criticism and believed that constructive criticism of his judgments from the Bar was necessary and that it was a foundation for judicial refinement and improvisation of judicial techniques.
In his decade long stint at the Madras High Court, Justice S. VAIDYANATHAN authored 1219 judgments that were reported, of which 692 were delivered in the past 5 years.Amongst his favourite subjects were public law and its allied remedies that have served the constitutional mandate for the public in our democracy. His judgments touching on land encroachments and illegal/unauthorised constructions have been widely reported and appreciated, reinforcing the oft repeated concern that a growing Chennai needs robust and honest space/land management and utilisation policies. His judgment in Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation v. B Rajeswari1 showed his sense of legal recognition for work carried out and the position of women in the workforce, while the judgment in Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission v. P. Muthian2 showed the careful judicial consideration paid to RTI queries and mechanical rejection thereof. If public law was a favourite, the intersection of environmental law and civic duties was a pet project that was judicially nurtured in Tamil Nadu Pondy Plastic Association v. Government of Tamil Nadu3, where the objective of a plastic free society was judicially channelized. The crisis of jobless youth and rising unemployment was a deep concern in Re Ministry of Human Resources4, where fake information relating to employment
1 (2023) 2 LLJ 351 : (2023) 1 Writ LR 84
2 (2020) 4 LW 587
3 2022 SCC OnLine Mad 5081
4 2021 SCC OnLine Mad 2947
42 Madras Law Journal – Article (2024) 4 MLJ
was judicially dealt with and the threat of public ruin was addressed. The judicial spectrum extended to Amrut Distilleries Limited v. Authorised Officer where the difference relating to date of expiry and best before date was delineated.
In a judicial voyage of more than a decade, Justice S. VAIDYANATHAN’S emphasis on family values as known in India and its contemporary relevance where a man and woman are equal partners in action have often emanated as reflective thoughts in many of his judgments. His vision for an inclusive and equal society has been espoused in his judicial dicta and they have drawn inspiration from the Constitutional idea of an egalitarian fraternity, a value that he practised in his life.
When the waves of destiny flew him to the abode of clouds, transforming the last six months of his tenure to a learning experience in a different State. His judgment in Phot Khaii v. The State of Meghalaya reported as 2024: MLHC: 452-DB dealt with a complexcriminalappealwherethefactsrelatedtospousalbetrayalandconsequentculpable homicide not amounting to murder, where he once again underscored the salience of the bond between the husband and wife.
In a journey that has been marked by judicial contributions to the Bench and efforts to better the quality of the Bar in both Madras and Meghalaya, Chief Justice S. VAIDYANATHAN signed off his judicial vignette on 16thAugust, 2024.We join the legal fraternity in wishing him the very best in his next innings.
