The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) Executive Committee has passed a unanimous resolution expressing its objection to the changes made to the statue of Lady Justice and the apex court’s emblem, underlining that consultation with the bar was not taken place before introducing the change.

In a statement on Thursday, the SCBA took note that the Supreme Court brought about some “radical change” unilaterally without consultation with the association. “We are equal stakeholders in the administration of justice but these changes when proposed, were never brought to our attention. We are totally clueless on the rationale behind these changes,” the Bar’s resolution stated.

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The statement further said that now a museum has apparently been proposed in the erstwhile judges library. “Whereas we had demanded a Library, Cafe cum Lounge for the members of the Bar as the present cafeteria is inadequate to cater to the needs of the members of the Bar. We are concerned that despite our objection raised against the proposed Museum in the erstwhile Judges library, work has started for the museum,” added the resolution passed by the bar headed by senior advocate Kapil Sibal. 

The bar then declared it unanimously opposes the proposed musicum in the High Security Zone, adding that instead it demands a Library and a cafe cum Lounge for its members.

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President Droupadi Murmu last month unveiled the new flag and insignia of the Supreme Court at the two-day National Conference of District Judiciary in New Delhi. The newly unveiled flag features symbols such as the Ashoka Chakra, the Supreme Court building, and the Constitution of India. While the new Supreme Court flag is blue in colour, the insignia had ‘Supreme Court of India’ and ‘Yato Dharmastato Jayah’ (Y) (in Devanagari script) inscribed on it. The chief justice Chandrachud had also unveiled the ‘new lady justice’ statue in the Supreme Court premises,  replacing the original lady justice.

Commenting on the development, Journalist Maneesh Chhibber noted that controversy seems to be following the chief justice’s every move at the “fag end of his tenure.”

“Nothing seems to be going right for outgoing CJI DY Chandrachud. At the fag end of his tenure, controversy seems to be following his every move. SCBA has now questioned his move to change the court emblem & also turn the judges’ library into a museum,” Chhibber wrote in a post on X.

Nothing seems to be going right for outgoing CJI DY Chandrachud. At the fag end of his tenure, controversy seems to be following his every move. SCBA has now questioned his move to change the court emblem & also turn the judges’ library into a museum. pic.twitter.com/dmBEXkMkFO

— Maneesh Chhibber (@maneeshchhibber) October 23, 2024

Notably, the Chief Justice had ignited a controversy while recently sharing his experience of reflecting on the Ayodhya dispute case. He said he had prayed to the god for a solution to the case before pronouncing the verdict, underscoring that the god will find a way for those who have faith. The remark drew flak from opposition parties including Sanjay Raut of the Shiv Sena (UBT) and Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Ram Gopal Yadav. CJI Chandrachud was part of the bench headed by then Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi in 2019 that delivered the judgment in the case, paving the way for the construction of the Ram temple in the place where Babari masjid was situated, which was demolished by the right-wing groups including the VHP and the BJP members in 1992.

Last month, the outgoing chief justice met with another controversy when Prime Minister Modi visited the CJI’s residence for the Ganesh Chaturthi celebration, igniting debates on crossing the line between judiciary and executive. It was reported that the Prime Minister was an invited guest at the CJI’s home, raising questions on the conduct of the DY Chandrachud.