SHIMLA: A Full Court Reference was held today in the High Court of Himachal Pradesh to mourn the sad demise of Justice Narendra Mohan Kasliwal, former Chief Justice High Court of Himachal Pradesh. Justice Kasliwal passed away on 10th January, 2021. He adorned the office of the Chief Justice of High Court from March, 1989 to October 1989.
Born on 4th April, 1928 in Jaipur, Justice Kasliwal joined the Bar in 1954 and practiced on civil and constitutional sides in Jaipur and Jodhpur. He was a part time lecturer in Law College, Jodhpur from 1960 to 1972. Justice Kasliwal was elevated as Additional Judge of Rajasthan High Court on 15th June, 1978 and was appointed as a permanent Judge in November, 1978.
On 29th March, 1989, he was sworn in as Chief Justice of Himachal Pradesh High Court. On 6th October, 1989 Justice Kasliwal was appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court of India. Justice Kasliwal reahed superannuation on 4th April, 1993.
Addressing the august audience on the occasion, the Chief Justice Mohammad Rafiq said during Justice Kasliwal’s nearly four years long tenure at the Supreme Court, he played vital role in the elevation of our country’s jurisprudence. In the Supreme Court he was part of several Constitution Bench decisions and laid down several principles of law which are foundation for effective dispensation of justice.
Justice Kasliwal was part of the decision in Abdul Rehman Antuley versus R.S. Nayak case, which is a seminal ruling in safeguarding the rights of an accused. In St. Stephen’s College versus University of Delhi, Justice Kasliwal dissented by stating that the right conferred under Article 30 of the Constitution is a general right granted to all minorities, but any such educational institution receiving state funds would be required to fall in line equally with other institutions. Justice Kasliwal’s also contributed from the Bench in matters of environmental jurisprudence.
Chief Justice further said that subsequent to his retirement, Justice Kasliwal was appointed by the Government of India to head a High-Level Committee to look into and advice the matter of expeditious disposal of pending cases of disbursement of compensation to the victims of Bhopal gas leak disaster. Justice Kasliwal was a multifaceted personality with varied commitment to the cause of justice. The remarkable characteristic of Justice Kasliwal was wide range of law covered by his judgments which are shining in the law journal.
The Chief Justice while expressing his deep condolence to the bereaved family said that passing away of Justice Kasliwal is not only a loss to the bereaved family members but also to entire legal fraternity.
Judges of High Court of H.P. Justice Sabina, Justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan, Justice Vivek Singh Thakur, Justice Ajay Mohan Goel, Justice Sandeep Sharma, Justice Jyotsna Rewal Dua and Justice Satyen Vaidya were also present on the occasion.
Two minutes silence was also observed as a mark of respect to the departed soul.
Ashok Sharma, Advocate General, Ajay Kochhar, Chairman, Bar Council of Himachal Pradesh, Lovneesh Kanwar, President Bar Association, H.P. High Court and Balram Sharma, Assistant Solicitor General of India also paid tributes to Justice Kasliwal. Virender Singh, Registrar General, J.K. Sharma, Registrar (Vigilance), Yogesh Jaswal, Registrar (Rules and Judges Branch) Paras Doger, Registrar (Judicial and Protocol), Jaswant Singh, Registrar (Administration), Madan Kumar, District & Sessions Judge (Leave/Training reserve), Davinder Chopra, Registrar (Accounts) Mrs. Poonam Mahajan Registrar (Establishment), Hakikat Dhanda, Central Project Coordinator, members of High Court Bar Association and employees of High Court Registry were also present on the occasion.
