Justice Rajesh Bindal Retires After 20-Year Stint Shaping India's Judiciary

During his long stint, with expertise in indirect taxation and contribution to strengthening the use of information and communication technology in the judicial system and mediation, Justice Bindal served the High Courts of Punjab and Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, Calcutta and Allahabad.

Born on April 16, 1961, in Haryana's Ambala city, Justice Bindal did his LLB from Kurukshetra University in 1985 and joined the legal profession in the Punjab and Haryana High Court in September 1985.

He was associated on behalf of Haryana in the settlement of the dispute concerning the Satluj Yamuna Water with Punjab before the Eradi Tribunal and the Supreme Court. He was elevated as a Judge of the High Court of Punjab and Haryana on March 22, 2006.

"During his tenure, he has the reputation of quick disposal of cases and an exposure to indirect taxes to a great extent," recalled a senior advocate with the Punjab and Haryana High Court, who worked with Justice Bindal when he was an advocate.

Under the guidance of Justice Bindal, Haryana developed a litigation management system in the High Court and at the district level to effectively manage the state's litigation. The same system has been adopted by Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

He was also a member of the committee constituted by the National Legal Services Authority to go into the existing framework of Lok Adalats and mediation and to suggest ways for enhancing operational efficiency and plugging gaps, if any, for better application of the alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mechanisms for weaker sections of society.

Before his transfer to the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir, he remained President, Board of Governors of the Chandigarh Judicial Academy and the Chairman of various committees, including the computer committee, and was instrumental in the development of a large number of software applications, including the MedLEaPR (Medico-Legal Examination and Post-Mortem Reporting System). The MedLEaPR is a workflow-based, web-based, centralised system for the preparation of medico-legal and post-mortem reports, which provides requisite access security, based on the roles and responsibilities of doctors concerned and health institutes, etc.

Initially, it was operated in Punjab, Haryana and the Union Territory of Chandigarh, and thereafter in Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. The Centre, in December 2023, made it mandatory for all states to follow.

Justice Bindal was transferred to the Calcutta High Court and was sworn in on January 5, 2021. He was appointed to perform the duties of the office of the Chief Justice of the High Court at Calcutta with effect from April 27, 2021. He took oath as Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court on October 11, 2021.

He was elevated to the Supreme Court in February 2023.

- IANS