Deviating from the usual practice of the ceremonial bench of the retiring judge with the Chief Justice, the Bombay High Court held a full court farewell function in the Central Courtroom for Justice Gautam Patel who retired on Thursday. Traditionally, the retiring judge sits with the Chief Justice on his/ her last day.
The central court hall, where Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak was tried for sedition by the British government, was packed with sitting high court judges, lawyers, staff and several others who gave justice Patel a standing ovation as he prepared to bid farewell to the institution where he practised as an advocate and then was elevated to the bench.
An emotional Justice Patel thanked the bar (advocates’ associations) and the bench for setting a new tradition for him and said it was an honour. Talking about the 150-year-old HC heritage structure, Justice Patel said the building holds a special place for him.
“I would beseech everyone to not let go of this institution ever. If in future, a new high court building is set up elsewhere, let something remain here. Take a stone from this building and lay it as a foundation stone there,” Justice Patel said.
Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya said Justice Patel was a scholar judge and was a perfect blend of justice and compassion. Looking at the crowd present, the chief justice said it showed how popular Justice Patel is.
“During our lunch session, Justice Patel became emotional...not because of just not being a judge anymore...but because of his attachment to this institution and building. His commitment and zeal is unwavering in the real sense,” the CJ added.
Judicial Career And Activism
Justice Patel, born in Mumbai in 1962, graduated from St. Xavier's College and studied law at Government Law College. He started his practice as a lawyer in 1987 and focused on commercial, corporate, and civil litigation. He even took up several environmental related public interest litigations, including those related to the Sanjay Gandhi National Park, protection of mangroves, town and country planning issues, Melghat National Park, the Mill Lands, protection of open spaces, etc.
It was based on Justice Patel’s letter that the high court had suo motu cognisance of the issue of potholes in the city, and passed a detailed judgment in 2018 laying guidelines for the BMC to follow to keep the roads pothole free. Unfortunately, the judgment has not been fully implemented in spirit and the BMC is fighting a contempt plea for non-compliance of the order.
After being elevated to the bench, the activist streak continued in him, who took up various issues and did not hesitate to pass strictures against the highest officers of various government authorities.
Recently, he took up suo motu cognisance of the drowning of two minor boys at a civic garden in Wadala, after which the civic body agreed to pay a compensation of Rs10 lakh to their parents. While pulling up the BMC, the judge had asked, “What is the price of a human life in this city?”
Judicial Advocacy And Landmark Verdicts
While cracking down on the BMC for failing to take action against unauthorised hawkers, the judge empathised for the vendors who are trying to eke out a living in the maximum city. While asking the BMC to formulate an alternative hawking policy, the judge had asked a fundamental question “who is this city for?”
Justice Patel delivered a verdict on the succession of the Bohra community and upheld that the “nass” given to 53rd Dai ul-Mutlaq Syedna Muffadal Saifuddin was valid. The judge had dismissed the suit initially filed by Khuzaima Qutbuddin, and after his death, his son Taher Fakhruddin became th3e plaintiff, challenging the appointment of Syedna Saifuddin as the Dai.
At a recent function held by the Bombay Bar Association for Justice Patel, he said he is the only one who started hearing the suit in 2014, when it was filed, and concluded after nearly a decade. It's a rarity in civil suits for a single judge to conduct the hearing and deliver the verdict.
Legal Rulings And Advocacy For Judicial Well-being
Early this week, the bench presided by Justice Patel held that public sector banks do not have the power in law to issue Look Out Circulars (LOCs) against default borrowers, who are either Indian citizens or foreigners. It held as unconstitutional the clause of an Office Memorandum issued by the Central government which empowered the Chairman of public sector banks to issue LOCs against default borrowers.
Recently he presided over a bench that delivered a split verdict in the batch of petitions challenging the amendment to the Information Technology Rules, then empowered the government's Fact-Check Unit (FCU) to identify 'fake news' on social media platforms. Justice Patel ruled in favour of the petitioners and struck down the amended provision. However, Justice Neela Gokhale upheld it. The petitions are being heard by a reference judge. Once the third judge gives his opinion, the final judgment will be pronounced on the issue.
Over the years, he has been very vocal about the pressure faced by judges and remarked that it was beyond cruel. Last year, he recused himself from hearing a case after a lawyer representing the litigant mentioned that the petitioner had sent him personal emails stating that the petition was not being heard.
Justice Patel's Diverse Contributions and Commitment Beyond the Bench
In 1994-1995, Justice Patel received the First international Fellowship at Pacific Energy & Resources Center, Sausalito, California in environmental law. This included course work at the University of Berkeley's Boalt Hall School of Law and an internship with the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund.He served as the Honorary Secretary of the Bombay Bar Association for two three-year terms from 1a999 to 2005 and served on the Association's Standing Committee till his appointment as a High Court judge.
From 2008-2011 he was a part-time lecturer in Administrative Law, Constitutional Law and Environmental Law at Government Law College.
Justice Patel wrote a weekly newspaper column for a city tabloid and also contributed articles and reviews to a few newspapers and magazines.
He has previously served as a trustee on several public charitable trusts and foundations in the fields of education, environment and the hearing-impaired.
