Justice Iyer believed in Constitution's 'compassionate spirit': CJI

New Delhi : Chief Justice of India Justice Dipak Misra on Tuesday said late Supreme Court judge, Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer was the judge who "believed in the human and the compassionate spirit of the Indian Constitution".

Delivering the V.R Krishna Iyer memorial lecture here, he credited the last jurist with being the man who built the "edifice for access to justice" in the Indian jurisprudence.

"Whatever relief Justice Iyer granted to every poor or rich man, it was not on a whim or fancy, but was based on a foundational principle," he added.

Justice Iyer, considered as a legal luminary and a crusader for social justice, was a judge of the Supreme Court from July 17, 1973 to November 14, 1980 and died on December 15, 2014.

Attorney General K.K. Venugopal also gave his lecture on 'Role of judiciary in protecting human rights of the poor and marginalized' at the event organised by Sarada-Krishna-Satgamaya Foundation for Law and Justice, Delhi Chapter.

He remembered the immense praise Justice Iyer earned not just in India but even in neighbouring countries like Pakistan and Bangladesh.

"He should be placed amongst the greatest judges of the world, and not just of India.... As a judge of the apex court, there is hardly a facet of India's Constitution that he has remained untouched by him," said Venugopal.