Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud on Friday shared a heartwarming story about the advice his father gave him on maintaining moral and intellectual integrity.

In his farewell speech on his last day in court, CJI Chandrachud said his father, former CJI (late) YV Chandrachud, bought a small apartment in Pune and asked him to keep it till the last day of his mandate as judge.

Justice Chandrachud said his father wanted him to feel like he had a roof over his head. He advised him never to compromise as a lawyer or judge “because you don’t have a place of your own.”

“He (my father) bought this small apartment in Pune. I asked him, why the hell are you buying an apartment in Pune? When will we go there and stay there? He said, I know I will never stay there. He said I’m not sure how long I’ll be with you But do one thing, keep this apartment until the last day of your term as judge. he said, if you feel that way? moral integrity or your intellectual integrity is compromised, I want you to know that you have a roof over your head. Never allow yourself to be compromised, whether as a lawyer or as a judge, because you have no place of your own,” the judge said, Chandrachud said.

Justice YV Chandrachud was the longest serving Chief Justice of India.

Justice D.Y. Chandrachud said he had exposed his personal life to public knowledge.

“Sunlight is the best disinfectant. I know that in many ways I have exposed my own life to public knowledge. When you expose your own life to public knowledge, you open yourself up to criticism , especially in today’s age of social media, my shoulders are broad enough to accept all the criticism we have faced. The bar has responded with considerable support to all the initiatives we have taken. he added.

He also explained why his mother named him Dhananjay.

“Thank you very much for such a great honor…I would like to thank the Supreme Court Bar Association from the bottom of my heart for organizing this event…My mother told me when I was little that I would had named Dhananjay. ‘dhan’ in your “Dhananjay” there is no material wealth. I want you to gain knowledge,” he said.

Supreme Court Justice Sanjiv Khanna will take over as CJI on November 11.

At a farewell event for Justice Chandrachud, organized by the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA), Justice Khanna said there would be a “vacuum” in the Supreme Court with his resignation.

“When a towering tree in the Forest of Justice recedes, the birds stop their songs and the wind moves differently. Other trees move and adapt to fill the void. But the forest will never be quite the same again,” he added.

Everything you need to know about Justice Chandrachud

Justice Chandrachud was born on November 11, 1959. He was appointed as a Senior Advocate by the Bombay High Court in June 1998 and served as Additional Solicitor General, before being appointed as a Judge of the Bombay High Court on March 29 2000.

He then became the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court on October 31, 2013.

Justice Chandrachud holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from St Stephen’s College, Delhi, an LLB from the Campus Law Center of the University of Delhi, and an LLM and Doctorate in Juridical Sciences (SJD). from Harvard Law School.

With contributions from PTI, ANI