Members of the district judiciary in West Bengal, as well as registry staff of such Courts, will no longer have to address the Chief Justice of the High Court of Calcutta as ‘My Lord’ or ‘Lordship’. A simple ‘Sir’ will satisfy. This was announced in a letter sent from the Calcutta High Court Registrar-General via e-mail to all District Judges & Chief Judges on Tuesday.
As per the letter, the decision has been taken by the Chief Justice himself.
A Senior Member of the Judiciary said that “It is the kind desire of the Hon’ble Chief Justice that henceforth, officers of the district judiciary, including members of registry would address the Hon’ble Chief Justice as ‘Sir’ instead of ‘My Lord’ or ‘Lordship’, in conformity with the applicable judicial & administrative precedents,” the letter stated. Some legal experts in Kolkata feels this has set in motion the procedure to do away with a practice dating back to the British Raj. “In 2014, then Chief Justice of India H L Dattu had observed: When did we say it is compulsory? You can address us in a dignified manner…. Don’t address us as ‘Lordship’. Since then, changes have taken place in some HCs. This is a move in the right direction”.
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