Greatest responsibility: Justice Victoria Gowri on becoming Madras HC judge | Latest News India - Hindustan Times
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Greatest responsibility: Justice Victoria Gowri on becoming Madras HC judge

Feb 07, 2023 06:44 PM IST

Justice Gowri said her responsibility as a judge entailed hearing the oppressed voices of the poor and to liberate the marginalised.

Advocate Lekshmana Chandra Victoria Gowri took oath on Tuesday as an additional judge of the Madras high court while the Supreme Court was also hearing a case against her elevation citing her alleged hate speeches against minorities. The Supreme Court however, dismissed the petition.

Gowri was the first to take oath among four others as additional judges administered by the acting chief justice, T Raja. (ANI image)
Gowri was the first to take oath among four others as additional judges administered by the acting chief justice, T Raja. (ANI image)

In her speech, Justice Gowri said her responsibility as a judge entail hearing the oppressed voices of the poor and to liberate the marginalised.

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"I’m conscious and fully aware that today I’m handed over with the greatest responsibility of taking charge only to heed to the unheard and oppressed voices of the poorest of the poor, to liberate the marginalised…" she said.

READ | Victoria Gowri takes oath as Madras High Court judge after Supreme Court dismisses lawyers' plea

She thanked the Chief Justice of India, DY Chandrachud, the former and present chief justices of the Madras high court, the legal fraternity of the Madurai benches and her husband.

CPI (M), an ally of the ruling DMK, staged protests outside the campus of the Madras high court against Gowri taking oath as justice.

Gowri was the first to take oath among four others as additional judges administered by the acting chief justice, T Raja inside the library hall of the Madras HC.

Gowri, who has been embroiled in controversies–over her association with the BJP and interviews against minorities– since the Collegium recommended her name on January 17, found support inside the hall during her oath-taking ceremony.

READ | Woman judge gets appointed to Madras HC but lawyers move Supreme Court. Why?

Prior to her appointment, Gowri represented the BJP-led union government before the Madurai Bench of the Madras HC.

The union government on Monday had appointed advocate Gowri as one of the additional judges of the Madras HC despite opposition.

Last week, a group of 21 lawyers from the Madras HC had written to the Supreme Court’s Collegium as well as President Droupadi Murmu against Gowri citing her political affiliation to the BJP-led union government and hate speeches against minorities.

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  • ABOUT THE AUTHOR
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    Divya Chandrababu is an award-winning political and human rights journalist based in Chennai, India. Divya is presently Assistant Editor of the Hindustan Times where she covers Tamil Nadu & Puducherry. She started her career as a broadcast journalist at NDTV-Hindu where she anchored and wrote prime time news bulletins. Later, she covered politics, development, mental health, child and disability rights for The Times of India. Divya has been a journalism fellow for several programs including the Asia Journalism Fellowship at Singapore and the KAS Media Asia- The Caravan for narrative journalism. Divya has a master's in politics and international studies from the University of Warwick, UK. As an independent journalist Divya has written for Indian and foreign publications on domestic and international affairs.

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