Justice must touch gently — for law that cannot feel, cannot heal: Justice Kant

Justice, for him, is not a verdict pronounced from a pedestal but a whisper of understanding from a conscience awake. “A law that cannot feel, cannot heal,” says Justice Surya Kant, who sees compassion as the highest form of strength.

In his first in-depth conversation with The Tribune after being designated Chief Justice of India, Justice Surya Kant reflects on the moral compass guiding judicial interpretation, the balance between reason and empathy, and the judiciary’s duty to renew itself with the times.

“Every institution must reform not because it has failed, but because the world it serves keeps changing. Reform is not an admission of failure but an act of foresight — the duty of leadership to renew trust before it fades,” he says.

Justice Surya Kant, who will take oath as CJI o