Electoral Mandate Only Confers Authority; Legitimacy Is Sustained Through Conduct: CJI Surya Kant

An electoral mandate confers authority, but legitimacy is sustained through conduct. Citizens assess governance through what they are able to see and experience in their daily lives, especially how decisions are taken, how resources are used, and whether these bodies remain accessible when concerns arise, Chief Justice of India Surya Kant has said. In the keynote address at an event in Bengaluru marking four decades of journey of Karnataka Lokayukta and speaking on the topic of ‘Redressing Grievance, Combating Corruption and Maladministration’, CJI Kant invoked Garry Wills.“As has been rightly stated by the Pulitzer Prize-winning American author, Garry Wills, accountability is the essence of democracy. If people do not know what their government

is doing, they cannot be truly self-governing.The vitality of democratic mechanisms ultimately rests on this shared understanding between the State and the citizen," CJI Kant said. Citizens assess governance through what they are able to see and experience in their daily lives, especially how decisions are taken, how resources are used, and whether these bodies remain accessible when concerns arise, he said.“It is my proud privilege to join this gathering as we mark four decades of the Lokayukta’s journey in redressing grievances and addressing corruption and maladministration in the State of Karnataka. Milestones such as this invite reflection on the institution as well as on the larger values that make such frameworks necessary in a democracy," he said. The CJI said transparency performs a deeper democratic function. “It enables citizens to remain informed participants in public life rather than passive observers. It clarifies where power lies and how it is exercised, and strengthens the sense that public institutions are working in alignment with their desired purpose. Ultimately, democracy does not weaken when authority is examined. It weakens when authority becomes invisible.”“This is especially important in a society as large and diverse as ours, where administrative decisions often affect citizens far removed from the centres where those decisions are made. Systems that make governance understandable and within the reach of the people play a vital role in sustaining democratic”, CJI Kant added.WHAT CJI SAID AT THE CLEA INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCEWhile speaking at the Commonwealth Legal Education Association (CLEA) International Conference on ‘Sustainable Energy: An Agenda For India @2047: CJI Kant said ecological harm does not resolve itself overnight, and neither can judicial oversight. He said nowhere has this been more powerfully demonstrated than in the MC Mehta environmental issues related cases. “These cases gave us transformative directions: the shift to CNG vehicles in Delhi, the regulation of industries around Taj Mahal, and successive mandates on air quality in the NCR. They stand as a testament to what sustained judicial engagement with environmental concerns can achieve. “And yet, learning from evolving challenges, in order to ensure that the courts of this country can address them effectively, a bench led by me recently took an important institutional step: formally disposing of the original 1985 MC Mehta writ petitions and directing that each surviving issue be registered as an independent Suo Motu proceeding. The rationale was clear: every environmental concern deserves focused, dedicated attention rather than being subsumed within a single, sprawling docket. It is a sign of our institutional growth that we can step back, reorganise, and ensure that each matter of ecological significance receives the seriousness it demands.”“NEED A BALANCED APPROACH IN ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS”CJI Kant said a telling illustration of this evolving approach also arose some time back in a matter I adjudicated which some of you may know as Bindu Kapuria. “The question before us was whether to permit the construction of a road providing access to a hospital being built for the Central Armed Police Forces. On the one hand, improved connectivity would enable ambulances and emergency services to reach the facility with greater speed, potentially ensuring timely treatment of those and their families, who are protecting our borders. On the other, the project required the felling of nearly 700 trees from an ecologically sensitive stretch of the Delhi Ridge. Confronted with these competing interests, we understood that we will have to devise a balanced and restorative approach. Accordingly, we directed compensatory afforestation over 185 acres, to be undertaken under the supervision of an Expert Committee tasked with identifying suitable land and ensuring sustained compliance with our directions. The idea this approach embodied, one which I have repeatedly stated today, but allow me to, state it one more time for clarity’s sake: our Judicial approach now strives to reconcile competing interests through calibrated, context-sensitive solutions; ensuring that while developmental imperatives are not disregarded, they are pursued within the structure of accountability, restoration, and long-term ecological stewardship.”