[First published in YouthKiAwaaz]
One that sticks out is a particular phone call that was received one evening when the family was in the middle of dinner. Answering the intercom, Justice Ahmadi asked for the call to be transferred to his bedroom — a clear indication that the contents of the call were expected to be confidential. Leaving his mound of khichdi and mutton curry half eaten on the plate, he left the room to attend to the phone call.
Continuing with our meal, we thought nothing of this somewhat common occurrence, until a few minutes later we heard the booming voice of Aziz Ahmadi thunder from all the way down the bottom of the corridor, ‘I don’t care about becoming Chief Justice, I won’t do it!’ Like a sharp slap, the room fell into stillness as we exchanged uneasy glances and waited for him to return to the dining table. That night he did not.
Justice Ahmadi was next in line to become the Chief Justice of India, a post that he had dreamt of occupying for much of his adult life. A five member bench had been constituted to examine the constitutional validity of the Ayodhya Act through which the Central Government sought to gain control of administration and maintenance of the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid structure along with its premises.
Though the majority of the bench had already decided to rule in favour of the Centre, Justice Ahmadi and Justice Bharucha were determined to put out a minority judgement which explained why they considered the Act unconstitutional. There was tremendous pressure put on Justice Ahmedi to endorse the majority opinion, but as his biographer (and granddaughter), Insiyah Vahanvaty, notes “But, in the depths of his being, (Justice Ahmadi) realized the truth. This wasn’t a choice; it was a litmus test. In a test of integrity and ideals, there really was no option.” Justice Ahmadi passed that test, but one is left, wondering how many others will perform as well in a similar test.
Justice Amati served as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of India between 1994 and 1997. This was the pinnacle of a legal career that spanned well over four decades. He joined the bar in 1954, becoming one of the youngest judges ever appointed to the Sessions Court, and after a brief stint as the Law Secretary, was appointed to the Gujarat High Court. From there, he moved to the Supreme Court, where he authored several landmark judgements before becoming the Chief Justice. The period when he was in the Supreme Court was a time where a lot of constitutional provisions were tested, and many of the judgements he authored continue to be quoted even today.
Many of the cases that came up before his bench were of an intensely political nature, and he was often under a lot of pressure to give particular judgements. However, in his entire legal career, the only thing that influenced his judgements was whether something was constitutionally valid or not. Often, this required him to interpret the spirit behind a particular provision, and he always remained true to the secular principles on which the nation was founded. He was also a firm believer in ensuring that power was never concentrated in a few hands, and even when he was called upon to pass a judgement which would eventually have resulted in he himself having more power, he chose not to do so.
Justice Ahmadi was also known for the efficiency with which he cleared up the backlog of cases. The judicial system in India is so complex that a every single court has a huge backlog of cases, and right from his early days as the Law Secretary of Gujarat, he created a system, by which the pending cases could be categorised so they could be disposed off in an efficient and speedy manner.
He was a great believer in social justice, and often sumo moto took up cases which would give rights to people too poor to even think of approaching the legal system. The efficiency with which Justice Ahmadi was able to clear the backlog of cases attracted not just national, but also international attention. He was well regarded by the international legal community as somebody who was impartial, believed in the principles of justice and ensured that the needs of the common man were paramount.
When he passed away, Justice Ahmadi left behind private writings that he had one day hoped to include in a future book he, unfortunately, was unable to write — which he lovingly called his atma katha. Those writings form the basis of this biography by his grand daughter. The book, therefore, goes into great detail on the reason behind certain landmark judgements which would go on to continue to shape the legal discourse in future years.
This makes the book a virtual treasure trove for people who are from the legal profession. However, it is also tremendously interesting even to people who do not have a background in law, because it explains the rationale and the implications of certain judgement in very accessible language. It is to the credit of the biographer that she is able to sustain the interest of the lay person even while describing legal deliberations.
What also emerges in this biography is a intimate portrait of Justice Ahmadi, by his grand daughter who lived with him most of her life and saw a side of him that the public was not aware of. The man who loved sitting at his baithak and drinking unlimited cups of tea while pouring over legal documents. The husband who stood by his wife when he found that she was not really getting along with the rest of his family.
The father who allowed his daughter to marry the man she chose, when she chose, with the only condition being that she would never give up her studies or her professional ambitions. The grandfather who many years after his retirement became the close confident of his granddaughter, so much that it was to him that she first broke the news of wanting to marry a man from a different religion- his response shows more than anything else the person he was-
‘You know I don’t care about that. All that matters is the boy’s character. Not his religion.Ask him to come home on the weekend to meet me.’ Leaning forward, his expression open and reassuring, he continued, ‘I make no promises right now, but if I find the boy to be all right, you will have no objection.’ After all, ‘. . . it is not enough to show tolerance and respect for each other’s culture, more is required — they should be able to enjoy each other’s culture.’
This book will appeal to anybody who is either interested in the legal profession or who cares to understand the principles on which the country was founded and the many challenges that the nation has faced. This book is an intimate portrait of Justice Ahmadi and will interest people who would like to read about, a man who began life without much backing yet was able to make it to the pinnacle of his career based on strong values, hard work and the courage of conviction.
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