Chief Justice N.V. Ramana on Sunday pointed at the sharpdifference in the quality of the debate which took place in the various Houses(Parliament or other state Assemblies) post-Independence and contemporarydebates, which result in legislation having gaps, ambiguity in making laws, andabsence of clarity in the laws.
He added lack of wise and constructive debates in the Housesburdens the courts with a lot of litigation and it is also difficult to fathomthe intent behind the law.
Justice Ramana was speaking at the 75th Independence Daycelebrations conducted by the Supreme Court Bar Association at the top court.
Citing the nature of contemporary Parliament debates, theChief Justice said: "Now, it is a sorry state of affairs. We see thelegislations. Lots of gaps; lots of ambiguity in making laws. There is noclarity in laws. We do not know what is the intent of the legislature, whatpurpose laws are made, which is creating a lot of litigation, inconvenience andloss to the government as well as inconvenience to the public."
He added that this is what happens when intellectuals andprofessionals like lawyers are not in the Houses; and lawyers should activelyparticipate in public life.
Parliament saw several adjournments in the recentlyconcluded Monsoon session, with the Opposition cornering the government overthe Pegasus spyware issue, farm laws and fuel hike.
The Chief Justice emphasized that "if you seedebates, which used to take place in Houses post-Independence, were very, verywise and constructive and they used to debate any legislation, they weremaking."
Citing a debate in connection with the IndustrialDisputes Act, he said, "I have seen debates taking place and a CPI-Mleader used to discuss elaborately -- what are the consequences of making theseamendments in the Act and how will it affect the working class? Same waydifferent laws used to be discussed and deliberated. So, the burden on thecourts while interpreting or implementing is less. So, we had a clear picture,what they thought; what they wanted to tell us; why they are making such alegislation," he added.
The Chief Justice said the Independence struggle wasmostly led by lawyers -- Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel, etc.-- who not only sacrificed their profession, but also their properties, familyand everything; and got Independence for the country.
"If you take into consideration the first members ofthe Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha and state Assemblies. They were filled with lawyers.Unfortunately, over a period of time you know what is happening in the Houses,that is legislations, Parliament, Rajya Sabha, or any other Houses," headded.