JUDGMENT :

Dipak Misra, J.

New York Times, in the Editorial, “The Frankfurter Legacy,” on September 2, 1962, while stating about the greatness of Felix Frankfurter, chose the following expression:-

“History will find greatness in Felix Frankfurter as a justice, not because of the results he reached but because of his attitude toward the process of decision. His guilding lights were detachment, rigorous integrity in dealing with the facts of a case, refusal to resort to unworthy means, no matter how noble the end, and dedication to the Court as an institution.

Because he was human, Justice Frankfurter did not always live up to his own ideal. But he taught us the lesson that there is importance in the process.”

2. Almost two decades and two years back, the Court in Tata Cellular v. Union of India, (1994) 6 SCC 651 referred, with approval, the following passage from Neely, C.J. [Bernard Schwartz in Administrative Law, 2nd Edn., p. 584]:-

“82. … ‘I have very few illusions about my own limitations as a Judge and from those limitations I generalise to the inherent limitations of all appellate courts reviewing rate cases. It must be remembered that this Court sees approximately 1262 cases a yea