The Madras High Court’s new Chief Justice S.V. Gangapurwala on Thursday said that he would adapt to the traditions and culture of Tamil Nadu and live with the people of the state like how sugar gets dissolved in milk and enriches its taste.
Noting that he has been a judge of the Bombay High Court for 13 years, he said: “I bring the greetings from the land of saints and scholars to the people of the land rich in culture, art and intellect.”
“When Parsis from Persia had fled and landed at Navsarai ,the coastal region of Gujarat, the King there took a glass of milk filled to the brim and said you have no place here. The leader of the Parsis put sugar into the milk and said, ‘We will live with you like this’,” he said, and promised to repeat this on his part in Tamil Nadu.
Advocate General, R. Shanmughasundram, in his welcome speech, said that the Chief Justice was born into a family of lawyers with his father an accomplished lawyer in Maharashtra.
” His Lordship was elevated to the position of Acting Chief Justice of the Chartered High Court of Bombay after completing 12 arduous years of service in December 2022. This day, his Lordship is sitting as the Chief Justice in the Chartered High Court of Madras. Indeed the chance to lead two Chartered High Courts is uncommon in anyone’s judicial career and Your Lordship is gifted with that rare opportunity.”
He said that the Chief Justice was a distinguished and diligent jurist renowned for giving each party a patient hearing.
He also said that there were at least1 lakh Marathi-speaking people in Tamil Nadu and added that there was Thanjavur Marathi which was a dialect of Marathi spoken in the state. He also recounted that those who speak the Marathi dialect in Thanjavur were those who had settled there when the half-brother of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Venkoji Raja Bhonsle had conquered Thanjavur in 1676.
The AG also said that Thanjavur painting had reached its pinnacle during the Maratha rule and added that Maratha inscriptions were seen in the big temple in Thanjavur.
The Chief Justice, in his acceptance speech to the welcome address by Advocate General Shanmughasundaram, the Chairman of the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, and office bearers of various Bar associations, promised that all stakeholders would be taken into confidence in every important decision-making process and that it would be his bounden duty redress their grievances.
The new Chief Justice of the Madras High Court has been an ardent Tennis player and had captained the University tennis team and even played in the national level.
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