Chief Justice of India N V Ramana on Wednesday said the right of people to change governments through elections was no “guarantee against tyranny of the elected”.
The chief justice argued that democracy and its benefits could only be ensured by giving space to both “reasoned and unreasonable” public discourse.
Delivering the 17th Justice P D Desai Memorial Lecture on the topic "Rule of Law" through video conference, Justice Ramana also batted for complete judicial freedom.
The judiciary cannot be controlled, directly or indirectly, by the legislature or the executive, or else the rule of law will become illusory," he said.
The Chief Justice also cautioned that the judges should not get swayed by the "emotional pitch of public opinion" which gets amplified through social media platforms.