State's foremost duty is to ensure welfare of its people: SC judge

In a lecture on 'Different faces of the Indian Constitution' at the Himachal Pradesh High Court here, he said "The ultimate aim of the adoption of the Constitution was to secure justice for all, which was enshrined in the preamble of the Constitution."

"The first and foremost duty of the state is welfare of its people and secure justice for all which was the guiding spirit of the Constitution.

"This was debated among the great jurists in the constituent assembly on how the principals of equality, liberty and fraternity can be achieved and how justice can be secured for all," Goel said.

He said the state's legal services authority was rendering great service to provide people with access to justice.

Acting Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court Sanjay Karol said, "Justice Goel was a great scholar and jurist, and known for his simplicity. He has given many landmark judgements taking into consideration the ground realities."

High Court judges Tarlok Singh Chauhan, Sureshwar Thakur, Vivek Singh Thakur, Ajay Mohan Goel, Sandeep Sharma and Chander Bhusan Barowalia attended the programme.