'South Indians don't want to be isolated because they don't know Hindi': Supreme Court judge B V Nagarathna

New Delhi: South Indians do not want to be isolated because they do not know Hindi, Supreme Court judge B V Nagarathna said on Wednesday.

Responding to a question on the use of Hindi in the judiciary, Justice Nagarathna clarified that she does not mean politics and said India is a subcontinent and one cannot be very exclusive in one's language.

She said there are so many languages in the 8th Schedule of the Constitution and in south India, there are at least six languages.

Justice Nagarathna said one cannot be very exclusive in their language and what connects different south Indian states is English.

She said if one goes to Tamil Nadu, nobody speaks English or Hindi and communication is an issue.

"How do I converse? You must understand India as a subcontinent. I am not on politics here. In district courts, we have our individual languages like Kannada, Tamil etc. In constitutional courts, English is the official language," she added.

"Otherwise, how do we transfer judges to different high courts? Please, have some kind of moderation in this. Moderation is required when we say this because we (south Indians) do not want to be isolated as we do not know Hindi. This is what I am saying, coming from the south," she said.

Her response came after Chief Justice of India Surya Kant answered a question from a woman lawyer about the steps being taken by him for lawyers who are proficient in their local languages but do not know English.

CJI Kant said, "Kisi bhi bhasha ke prayog ke liye hamein samvedansheel hona hoga. Main kai bar court me litigants aur lawyers ko Hindi me bol deta hoon. Hamein is inhibition ko khatam karna hai. Ye theek hai ki hamara procedure aur law English mein bana hai."

"Main keval Hindi, Gujarati, Tamil ki baat nahi kar raha hoon but main local dialect ki baat kar raha hoon. We must speak the same language in the judicial system which the litigant wants to listen," he said.

Justice Kant was speaking at a panel discussion on the topic of "WE -- (Women Empowerment in Law): on Strength, Struggle and Success", organised by the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA).

The CJI said he strives to encourage all languages and Hindi being the national language, he feels proud to promote it.

Justice Nagarathna said she faced a lot of difficulty in starting her law practice after completing her LLB degree as her father (Justice E S Venkataramiah) was a Supreme Court judge and it was mutually decided that she would not even enrol as an advocate in Delhi.

"I had to go to Bengaluru and I had no house there. For three months, I sat at home. But on October 24, 1987, I left for Bengaluru. So this first is always there," she added.

"There is an adage that behind every successful man, there is a woman, but I would like to say that behind every successful woman, there is a family," she said.

The apex court judge asserted that institutional support is necessary for retaining women lawyers in the legal profession.

"The seniors must give cases to talented women juniors, not just domestic violence or family court cases, but challenging, complex civil and criminal matters, so that they can show their talent. The court must give support by giving opportunities and appointing them as amicus curiae.

"Thirty per cent of law officers of the central government should be women. If women are given an opportunity, they will definitely appear before the courts," she said.

Justice Nagarathna went on to say that "what the family will say to the women? You are out of the home from morning to evening. You are not attending to household duties, children, and at the same time, you are not earning. This is a very stark remark which comes from the family. How will she face this 'tana' (taunt)"? She said women advocates should be respected in courts and male lawyers should treat them as equals and peers.