NEW DELHI: Former Chief Justice of India Justice Adarsh Sein Anand died of a cardiac arrest here on Friday.
Justice Anand, 81, is survived by his wife and three daughters. He passed away this morning after suffering a massive heart attack.
The mortal remains of the 29th Chief Justice of India would be cremated on December 3 at the Lodhi cremation ground here.
Justice Anand occupied the top-most judicial post from October 10, 1998 till November 1, 2001.
Anand, who was also the Chairman of National Human Rights Commission from 2003 to 2006, had penned the landmark verdict in the D K Basu case, laying down guidelines on arrest, custodial torture and protection of prisoners’ rights.
Born on November 1, 1936 in Jammu, he had graduated from the Jammu and Kashmir University and obtained his law degree from the Lucknow University.
Justice Anand practiced law in the Punjab and Haryana High Court at Chandigarh and was appointed as an additional Judge of the Jammu and Kashmir High court in 1975. He was confirmed as a permanent Judge of the same Court in February, 1976.
He was appointed the Acting Chief Justice of Jammu and Kashmir High Court on 1984 and its Chief Justice the next year.
Justice Anand was elevated to the Supreme Court in November 1991 and subsequently became the CJI in 1998.
He had also authored a book titled “The Constitution of Jammu and Kashmir – Its Development and Comments”.
He was unanimously elected as the President of the International Institute of Human Rights Society in 1996.
He had participated in various national and international conferences including the first Appellate Judges Conference at Manila (Philippines) in 1977, 2nd Worldwide Common Law Judiciary Conference at Washington in 1997 and the SAARC Chief Justices’ Conference at Colombo in October, 1998.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief at the passing away of Justice Anand.
“Saddened by the demise of former Chief Justice of India, Justice AS Anand. My thoughts are with his family in this hour of grief. May his soul rest in peace,” Modi said in a tweet.
Governor N.N. Vohra, Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti and Deputy Chief Minister Dr Nirmal Singh also condoled the demise of Dr. Anand.
In a message, the Governor has prayed to the Almighty for granting peace to the departed soul and strength to the bereaved family to bear this unfortunate loss.
Mehbooba Mufti described Justice Anand as an eminent jurist of the country who considered justice to be a constitutional right and would long be remembered for providing inexpensive justice to people.
She said his judgments on issues of public interest would continue to guide the legal and legislative fraternity to work for the collective good of the society.
Mehbooba Mufti also recalled the contribution of Justice Anand, a son of the soil, in introducing the concept of Lok Adalats as the chairman of National Legal Services Authority and also as the chairman of National Human Rights Commission of India.
In a message, Dr Nirmal Singh prayed for eternal peace to the departed soul and strength to the bereaved family to bear this unfortunate loss.
Member Parliament and President National Conference, Dr Farooq Abdullah (MP) and Omar Abdullah, Working President also extended their heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family.
Saying that Justice Anand was an illustrious son-of-the-soil and had brought laurels to the State, Farooq highlighted his contributions in the field of justice and said his work would be remembered for a long time to come.
Senior NC leaders including NC General Secretary, Haji Ali Muhammad Sagar, Additional General Secretary Dr. Sheikh Mustafa Kamal, Provincial Presidents Nasir Aslam Wani and Devender Singh Rana besides party functionaries and legislators also expressed grief over Justice Anand’s demise and prayed for peace to the departed soul.
Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, Ghulam Nabi Azad expressed condolences and said “Adarsh Sein Anand, as the Chairman of the National Legal Services Authority, was instrumental in ensuring the formation of a Lok Adalatas at district levels across the country. He will be remembered for his honesty, uprightness and selfless service for the nation for many years to come. I pray that his departed soul may rest in peace and offer my heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family.”
Director General of Police, Jammu and Kashmir, Dr S.P Vaid while condoling the demise of Dr Anand, said that Dr Anand was a proud son of the soil whose services to the country in general and to judiciary in particular will be remembered for a long time.