Justice S.H. Kapadia, the outgoing Chief Justice of India, has put integrity back on track at the Supreme Court. During his tenure, he delivered some critical judgements involving corporate India—the Vodafone case, the Lefarge Mining case and also the Sahara verdict, asking the group to pay back investors Rs 1,700 crore and pushing the idea of corporate responsibility. While he will be noted for these cases, it will be more fitting to remember this Parsi idoliser of Swami Vivekananda as a champion of probity in the judiciary.

When Kapadia took charge in the summer of 2010, the courts were beset by a severe crisis of credibility, with several judges accused of wrongdoing or nurturing unhealthy associations. It seemed that another of the country’s vital institutions was on the decline. To Kapadia’s credit, when he retires on September 28, he leaves the reputation of the judiciary restored. Says Justice V.N. Khare, former CJI, who vetted Kapadia before his appointment as a Supreme Court judge, “I travelled to Mumbai to collect...