How AI Responded To Chief Justice DY Chandrachud’s Death Penalty Question

New Delhi: 

Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, known to pull up lawyers for breaking court decorum, had an Artificial Intelligence (AI) lawyer to deal with today. The interaction took place at the inauguration ceremony of the National Judicial Museum and Archive.

To test the AI lawyer’s knowledge, the Chief Justice asked, “Is the death penalty constitutional in India?” The AI lawyer, in the form of a spectacled man wearing an advocate’s bow tie and coat, replied, “Yes, the death penalty is constitutional in India. It is reserved for the rarest of rare cases as determined by the Supreme Court where the crime is exceptionally heinous and warrants such a punishment.” The Chief Justice looked impressed by the response. Justice Sanjiv Khanna, who is set to take over as the next Chief Justice on Monday, was also present. Other Supreme Court judges also attended the inauguration.

Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Justice said the new museum reflects the ethos of the Supreme Court and its importance for the nation. He said he would want the museum to become an interactive space for the younger generation. “You want to have younger children from schools and colleges, citizens who are not necessarily lawyers and judges to come here and breathe the air we breathe every day in the Court to bring a live experience to them of the importance of the rule of law and the work which all of us as judges and lawyers do,” he said.