Satyeshwar Roy was the former judge of the Ranchi bench of Patna High Court

Advocates of Jharkhand High Court abstained from work on Monday to mourn the death of former judge Justice Satyeswar Roy.

Roy, who was the first advocate from the tribal heartland to be elected as a judge of the Patna High court in unified Bihar, breathed his last at a city hospital in the small hours of Sunday. The former judge, who was undergoing treatment for a lung infection, is said to have suffered from multiple organ failure before his end. He was cremated at Harmu’s Mukhtidham on Monday in the presence of several, both former and current, Jharkhand and Patna High Court judges and lawyers.

Among those present at the cremation were Madras High Court Chief Justice M.Y. Eqbal, former Supreme Court judge S.B. Sinha, Jharkhand High Court Chief Justice Prakash Tatia, lokayukta Justice Amreshwar Sahay and advocate general Anil Kumar Sinha. Apart from this, all the sitting judges of the state high court and members of the registry from the high court and district court were also present during the cremation.

Usually soft-spoken, Roy started his career as an advocate in the Ranchi district court and soon came to be known for his in-depth knowledge of civil and revenue laws. He also practised in the Ranchi bench of Patna High Court, before being elevated as a judge in 1978, and remained in service till 1992.

Post retirement, Roy mainly was involved in matters of arbitration and consultation and was a committee member of the Surendranath Centenary School. He was also a member of a number of social organisations.

“He was an eminent jurist and had a vast knowledge of the law. He was always ready to walk that extra mile to dispose off cases and helped litigants redress their grievances,” is how high court practitioner A.K. Lal chose to remember Roy.

High court advocate Ranjan Kumar, on the other hand chose to remember Roy as someone who put in a lot of labour in understanding a case. Kumar said that the judge usually sifted through voluminous files to get an understanding of a case before it was argued in court. “His judgements were often pro poor and needy,” he said.