NEW DELHI: Justice Vikram Nath, who headed the Supreme Court bench that recently overturned an earlier ruling on stray dogs in Delhi-NCR, made a humorous remark about the unexpected fame the case brought him.“So long I have been known in the legal fraternity for the little work I do, but I am thankful to the stray dogs for making me known to the entire civil society, not only in this country but world over,” he said on Saturday at an event in Thiruvananthapuram, as reported by LiveLaw.

Justice Nath, who is set to become the Chief Justice of India (CJI) in February 2027, also expressed “gratitude” to current CJI BR Gavai for assigning the case to him.“And I am thankful to my CJI for allotting me that matter. I felt very elated… well, people outside India also know me. So I am thankful to them for giving me this recognition,” he quipped. “And I have also been receiving messages saying that apart from dog lovers, dogs are also giving me blessings and good wishes. In addition to human blessings and good wishes, I have their good wishes also.”On August 22, the bench led by Justice Nath stayed the August 11 ruling by a smaller two-judge bench, which had directed that stray dogs picked up from Delhi-NCR must not be released from shelters. The earlier ruling had sparked widespread protests by animal welfare activists and dog lovers.Modifying the order, the three-judge bench ruled that the dogs should be returned to the same location from where they were picked up — but only after being vaccinated and sterilised, aligning the directive with the existing animal welfare guidelines.The CJI shifted the case to Justice Nath’s bench after it was brought to his (Gavai’s) notice that the August 11 order was in conflict with earlier coordinate bench orders on the same matter.