B. N. Srikrishna
| B. N . Srikrishna | |
|---|---|
| Born | 21 May 1941 Bangalore, Karnataka |
| Occupation | former Supreme Court Judge |
| Spouse | Purnima |
Bellur Narayanaswamy Srikrishna known as Justice Srikrishna (born May 21, 1941) is an Indian jurist and a retired Judge of the Supreme Court of India.[1] From 1993-98, he headed the well-known Commission of Inquiry, the "Srikrishna Commission" as it became known, which investigated causes and apportioned blame for the Bombay Riots of 1992-93.[2] He is currently the chairman of the Financial Sector Legislative Reforms Commission (FSLRC). [3]
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[edit] Early life
Born in Bangalore, he was brought up in Bombay (now Mumbai) and graduated with a bachelor's degree in Science from the Elphinstone College of the University of Bombay, received an LL.B. from the Government Law College, Mumbai, an LL.M. from the University of Bombay, and stood second in the University. He holds an M.A. in Sanskrit from the University of Mysore, a diploma in Urdu and a postgraduate diploma in Indian Aesthetics from the University of Bombay. He knows eleven languages including his mother tongue Kannada[citation needed].
[edit] Career
Srikrishna, in 1967, entered private practice in the Bombay High Court,[4] specializing in labour and industrial law and was counsel for a number of large corporations. Besides appearing in the High Court, he also argued cases in the Supreme Court of India, and was designated as a Senior Advocate in 1987.
He was appointed as an additional judge of the Bombay High Court in 1990 and as a permanent judge in 1991. In 1993, he assumed charge of the Commission of Inquiry into the riots that took place in Bombay in 1992-93. The "Srikrishna Commission", as it became known, submitted its report in 1998, and generated widespread interest in India and abroad. In September 2001, Justice Srikrishna was appointed as the Chief Justice of the Kerala High Court and on October 3, 2002, was appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court of India. On May 21, 2006, as per rules, on reaching the age of superannuation of sixty-five years, Justice Srikrishna retired from the Supreme Court of India.
In September, 2006, Justice Sr Bombay Riots=== In 1992-93, the city of Mumbai was rocked by communal riots between the Hindu and Muslim communities after the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya by thousands of Hindu Karsevaks. While communal riots are not unusual in modern Indian history, these riots were particularly startling in light of Mumbai's largely peaceful past. Above all the Bombay Riots appeared to compromise the much-vaunted image of the city as cosmopolitan, secular and tolerant. Further, the riots appeared to solidify the image of Shiv Sena chief Balasaheb Thackeray who scathingly criticised the judiciary.
He, then a relatively junior Judge of the Bombay High Court, accepted the task of investigating the causes of the riots, something that many of his colleagues had turned down.[citation needed] For five years, until 1998, he examined victims, witnesses and alleged perpetrators. Detractors came initially from left-secular quarters who were wary of a judge who was a devout and practicing Hindu.[5] The Commission was disbanded by the Shiv Sena-led government in January 1996 and on public opposition was later reconssions of Inquiry Act, an Inquiry is not a court of law (even if it conducts proceedings like a court of law) and the report of an inquiry is not binding on Governments, Srikrishna's recommendations cannot be directly enforced. To this date, the recommendations of the Commission have neither been accepted nor acted upon by the Maharashtra Government.
[edit] The Srikrishna Report on Madras High Court Riots
Justice Srikrishna headed a one-man commission to inquire about the February 19, 2009 Madras High Court incidents. He submitted an interim report on March 4, 2009 with his findings to the Supreme Court of India.
He is interested in refugee law and human rights issues, and besides being a member of the International Association of Refugee Law Judges, has presented papers on the subject. He was invited by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to Geneva for a seminar on New Forms of Persecution in 2000, and on the Justiciability of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights to New Delhi in 2001.
His study of Indian Philosophy & Jurisprudence, has also published a number of articles on the subject, including an article on "Conflict and Harmony: The Genesis of Legal and Social Systems", which is to be published in the journal, History of Science and Philosophy of Science. He is on the Editorial Board of the Journal of the Indian Law Institute.
He is a Life Member of the National Institute of Personnel Management, is also associated with the Western Region Committee of the Employers Federation of India, the Industrial Relations Research Association (USA), and the International Bar Association (UK).
[edit] Committee for separate Telangana
A Five member, committee was constituted with Justice Srikrishna as the chairman of the committee in March 2010.[6] The committee submitted its report 30 December 2010.[7] Other members of the committee are
- Vinod Duggal - former Union Home Secretary
- Ravindar Kaur - professor at IIT Delhi
- Abusaleh Sharif - Ph.D is a Senior Research Fellow at the New Delhi Office of International Food Policy Research Institute
- Prof. (Dr.) Ranbir Singh, Vice-Chancellor - National Law University
[edit] Criticism
Criticism of the Sri Krishna Committee report includes that it compared regions (Seema-Andhra vs Telangana), not people (Seema-Andhrites vs Telanganites). The state government did not or could not provide all the data the committee asked for; they had only 10 years worth of data.[8][9]
The Telangana JAC steering committee, comprising experts from different fields,[10][11] studied the Sri Krishana Committee report and came to the conclusion that the report was a " bunch of lies",.[12][13][14][15]
Economist and former Planning Commission member C.H. Hanumantha Rao said that the Srikrishna Committee's recommendations are at variance with its own analysis. He said the committee did not study the reasons for the failures of earlier protections, and how future protections will do justice to Telangana. He said that even while the committee's own analysis and data supports the formation of an independent Telangana, it only recommended this as the second-best option.[16]
[edit] Personal life
Srikrishna belongs to the Hoysala Karnataka (Smartha Brahmin)[citation needed] community. He is married to Purnima and has two daughters, Sushma and Sowmya.
- ^ "Justice Srikrishna to probe lawyers-police clash in Madras HC". The Hindu (Chennai, India). February 26, 2009. http://www.hindu.com/holnus/000200902262034.htm.
- ^ http://inhome.rediff.com/money/2006/sep/01pay.htm
- ^ http://www.thehindu.com/business/Economy/article1568477.ece
- ^ http://www.indianexpress.com/res/web/pIe/ie/daily/19981126/33050884.html
- ^ Mehta, Suketu (2004). Maximum City: Bombay Lost and Found. Alfred A Knopf. p. 81. ISBN 0-375-40372-8.
- ^ http://www.hindustantimes.com/Srikrishna-panel-to-visit-Hyderabad-from-May-24-26/H1-Article1-547218.aspx
- ^ Srikrishna Report on Telangana at IBNLive
- ^ Govt to SKC: It has only 10 years data.
- ^ The Srikrishna Committee Report: A Waste of Time
- ^ [1]
- ^ "Agitation threat by Telangana employees' union". The Hindu (Chennai, India). September 22, 2006. http://www.hindu.com/2006/09/22/stories/2006092216570300.htm.
- ^ Telangana JAC Experts to nail Srikrishna 'lies'
- ^ SKC Report: The Facts and False Claims
- ^ "Samaikyandhra JAC endorses 6th option". The Hindu (Chennai, India). January 8, 2011. http://www.hindu.com/2011/01/08/stories/2011010861140300.htm.
- ^ PRP Welcomes Srikrishna Panel Recommendations
- ^ Srikrishna Committee on Telangana: Recommendations at Variance with the Analysis - C.H Hanumanth Rao
17. High Court Judgement on 'undemocratic secrete 8th chapter of Srikrishna committee'
18. Full Text of Secret Note of Chapter 8 of Srikrishna committee
19. How Low is too low for Justice Srikrishna - article by Amarnath
20. Justice Srikrishna's injustice
[edit] Further reading
- Draupadi Rohera, "The sacred space of Justice Srikrishna", Sunday Times (Times of India) (Aug. 16, 1998) (discussing Justice Srikrishna's Hindu beliefs and his work with the Commission).
- Mehta, Suketu. Maximum City: Bombay Lost and Found, (2004), Part I Ch. II. ISBN 0375403728.
[edit] External links
- Official Supreme Court of India Biography
- Justice B.N. Srikrishna, "Skinning a Cat", (2005) 8 SCC (Jour) 3, available at http://www.ebc-india.com/lawyer/articles/2005_8_3.htm (a critique of judicial activism in India).
- Justice B.N. Srikrishna, "Maxwell versus Mimamsa", (2004) 6 SCC (Jour) 49, available at: http://www.ebc-india.com/lawyer/articles/2004v6a5.htm (a critique of Indian and Western interpretative techniques).
- Praveen Swami, "A welter of evidence: How Thackeray and Co. figure in the Srikrishna Commission Report", 17(16) Frontline (Aug. 5-18, 2000), available at http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl1716/17160110.htm (examining the Justice Srikrishna Commission's indictment of Bal Thackeray and the Shiv Sena).
- AP High Court Judgement Full Notes on Sri Krishna Committee's Chapter 8 on Telangana
