Every rupee spent on judicial infrastructure will strengthen public confidence: Justice Surya Kant

Every rupee spent on judicial infrastructure by the Centre as well as the State governments may not give them monetary returns but it would certainly help in strengthening public confidence on the judiciary, said Justice Surya Kant in Chennai on Sunday (October 26, 2025). He is the most senior judge of the Supreme Court and next in line to be the 53^rd Chief Justice of India.

He inaugurated a renovated 126-year-old heritage building which once housed the prestigious Madras Law College but had now been annexed to the Madras High Court, and said, the Madras High Court stands tall among the country’s chartered High Courts as a guardian of constitutional promise and as a symbol of the collective pursuit for justice.

“Since its inception in 1862, this High Court has nurtured a resolute lineage of jurists. The renovated heritage building which we inaugurated today strengthens that lineage. This building holds a special emotional resonance. Since 1899, the corridors of this building had moulded generations of eminent lawyers, judges and academicians who shaped the Indian judiciary and our Republic’s jurisprudence,” he said.

Stating the judicial mission was to serve every citizen with fairness and dignity besides providing accessibility, Justice Kant said, “infrastructural indulgence is an imperative.” Justice M.M. Sundresh of the Supreme Court participated in the celebrations virtually from Barcelona and said: “From being a tributary of the judiciary, this heritage building has today become the judiciary itself.”

Justice R. Mahadevan of the Supreme Court reminisced the days when jurists such as former Supreme Court judge C. Nagappan served as a faculty at the Madras Law College. He said, the present transformation of the building was not merely architectural and that it unites the past with the present. “The ideals that once inspired students will now inspire the judges, lawyers and litigants,” he said.

Union Minister of State for Law and Justice (independent charge) Arjun Ram Meghwal said, the inauguration of the renovated heritage building marks a significant milestone in improving judicial infrastructure in the country. He said, the Centre was steadfast in its aim to improve the infrastructural facilities and ensure that every judge, lawyer and litigant had access to an efficient judicial system.

Madras High Court Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava said, it’s a great moment when a temple of learning and education was being transformed into a temple of justice. Since most of the sitting judges and practising lawyers in the High Court had studied law in the heritage building, he said, henceforth, they would be discharging their duties too as judges and lawyers from the same edifice.

Tamil Nadu Law Minister S. Regupathy said, the State government was committed to providing best possible infrastructural facilities for the judiciary. Justice R. Suresh Kumar, the most senior judge of the Madras High Court, said, the State government had handed over the heritage building to the High Court in 2022 and also sanctioned ₹23.13 crore for the renovation work which commenced on September 4, 2022 and took three years to complete.

Justice M.S. Ramesh, Advocate General P.S. Raman and Additional Solicitor General AR.L. Sundaresan also spoke. Sitting as well as former judges of the Madras High Court, Bar Council of India vice-chairman S. Prabakaran, Bar Council of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry chairman P.S. Amalraj, office-bearers of various bar associations, lawyers, court staff and others participated.