Judicial Iconography in India

Abstract

Courts often create an ‘image of justice’ that has different meanings for different people. These images of justice are created through the architecture, ceremony, ritual, dress and language that exist within the walls of a court. Therefore, the entire structure of the court can be said to have a story that is linked to its ‘iconography’ that covers its exterior and interior façade creating a particular ‘image of justice’. There are several academic writings in the West on judicial iconography linked to court structures that influence the way justice is imaged. However, this field of academic research is relatively nascent in India. This article relates these existing concepts to judicial iconography in India. The available literature on courts in India is the evidence of the fact that courts in India also provide a particular image of justice. This is seen through examples from the Supreme Court of India, the Bombay High Court, the Rajasthan High Court, a District Court in Tamil Nadu and the High Court of Punjab and Chandigarh. This article therefore addresses how the study of iconography extends to judicial discourse. The infinite examples and instances of the different images of justice that abound the courts create a space for research on judicial iconography wherein every court in India has a story to tell and an image to create.