Former Karnataka HC judge D V Shylendra Kumar, who set example by declaring his assets, dies at 71

The article, which began “who are the judges afraid of; what are the judges afraid of”, paved the way to a decision by the judges of the Supreme Court on August 26, 2009 to disclose their assets on the website of the court.

Setting an example himself, soon after the publication of the article, Justice Kumar went the whole hog on declaring his assets by putting it up on a secure personal website after the Karnataka High Court dallied for a consensus among its judges to declare their assets.

The son of a former member of the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly, from the Hosur constituency, just outside Bangalore, Justice Kumar was elevated to the judiciary after being a successful member of the bar. Enrolled as an advocate in 1976, Justice Kumar originally practiced in the Madras High Court before shifting to the Karnataka High Court.

He was appointed an Additional Judge of the Karnataka High Court in December 2000 and became a permanent judge in April 2002.

One of the most talked about judgments that Justice Kumar pronounced was in connection with mining in forests around Karnataka. The judge personally visited sites where mines were located before directing the government of Karnataka to stop all mining in forests as stated in law. A division bench of the High Court, however, later overturned the single-judge order.