The Supreme Court of India will host the Commonwealth judges’ conference for the first time, but without Pakistan and Bangladesh. A senior official said both countries were excluded due to strained diplomatic relations as judges meet to discuss judicial cooperation.
The Supreme Court of India will, for the first time, host the Commonwealth judges’ conference this weekend, but without representatives from Pakistan and Bangladesh.
Organized by the Canada-based Commonwealth Judicial Education Institute, this two-day event will gather Supreme Court judges from all Commonwealth nations to discuss various topics, ranging from strengthening judicial systems to enhancing trans-border cooperation among judicial bodies.
According to sources, A senior officer from the Supreme Court’s organizing team revealed that Pakistan and Bangladesh were excluded from the conference due to the currently strained diplomatic relations with India.
When India was confirmed as the host nation, the organizers were made aware of this limitation regarding the two neighboring countries, the officer stated.
The conference is expected to address institutional challenges of the present day, utilize artificial intelligence for greater efficiency, and explore the existing arbitration framework among Commonwealth nations.
With disputes increasingly becoming international sometimes even among private parties the discussions will also cover the principle of comity of courts.
The senior officer who spoke to media explained,
“We often come around cases where parties, particularly in matrimonial disputes, after having fought their disputes in a foreign court come to India and invoke the jurisdiction here. This is done despite a foreign court decree either in their favour or against them. Under the comity of court principle, courts are bound to respect the foreign court’s judgment,”
Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, along with several senior judges he designates, will represent the Supreme Court at the conference. Additionally, one judge from each high court will be nominated to attend and collaborate on developing a common training module for judges across Commonwealth countries.
Given that the training of judges is a core focus of the conference, CJI Surya Kant has also invited former Supreme Court judge Justice Aniruddh Bose, who heads the National Judicial Academy, to participate. A representative from each regional judicial academy will also be in attendance.
According to another source, international participants are required to register with the Judicial Education Institute for a fee. While registration fees are set at $800 for judges from other nations, Indian judges will be charged $300.
Another source disclosed that the Supreme Court expressed its intention to host this international conference to the organizers last year.
He noted,
“When the then CJI Sanjiv Khanna received the invite to attend this conference that was held in Malta, he nominated Justice Surya Kant to attend it. There, Justice Surya Kant, now the present CJI, suggested to the organizers to hold the next conference in New Delhi and offered to host it as an official Supreme Court event. The organizers accepted his proposal and took it up with him soon after he took oath as the CJI,”
Recently, the top court has made significant efforts to foster relationships with serving Supreme Court judges from other countries.
As part of this initiative, the Supreme Court has signed a memorandum of understanding with Singapore to develop a comprehensive training program for its judges, engaged with judges from the UK on technological enhancements in the justice delivery system, and initiated an exchange program with Bhutan, which allows two law interns to work alongside Supreme Court judges.
The swearing-in ceremony for CJI Surya Kant also marked a significant occasion as judges from Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Kenya, Malaysia, and Mauritius were present.