CJI-designate Justice Surya Kant will succeed Justice Gavai on November 24.

Justice Surya Kant was effusive in his praise for the outgoing CJI and termed him "more than a colleague" and "brother."

"He was more than a colleague… he was my brother and a confidant, and a man of immense integrity," Justice Surya Kant said in the forenoon in the proceedings of the ceremonial bench.

"He handled cases with patience and dignity. He encouraged young lawyers. His firmness was always laced with humour... Not a single day went by when he didn't threaten an insistent lawyer with costs but he never imposed one," he said.

During the farewell proceedings in the forenoon before the ceremonial bench that also comprised CJI-designate Surya Kant and Justice K Vinod Chandran, the CJI said, "After listening to all of you, and particularly the poems of Attorney General (R Venkataramani) and Kapil Sibal and the warm sentiments expressed by all of you, my voice is choking with emotions."

"When I leave this courtroom for the last time, I leave this court all with full sense of satisfaction, the full sense of contentment that I have done whatever which I could have done for this country...Thank you. Thank you very much," a visibly emotional Gavai said in the courtroom packed with law officers, senior advocates and young lawyers.

The proceedings saw colleagues reminiscing the imprint Justice Gavai, the second Dalit after K G Balakrishnan and the first Buddhist CJI, left on the judiciary.

"I always believe that everybody, every judge, every lawyer, is governed by the principles on which our Constitution works that is equality, justice, liberty and fraternity and I tried to discharge my duties within the four corners of the Constitution that is so dear to all of us," he said.

Justice Gavai, who was sworn in on May 14 for over a six-month tenure as the CJI, would demit office on November 23, a Sunday, and Friday was his last working day.

Reflecting on his journey, the CJI said, "When I joined the (legal) profession in 1985, I entered the school of law. Today, as I demit the office, I do so as a student of justice."

He described his over 40-year journey, from a lawyer to a high court judge to a Supreme Court judge and finally the Chief Justice of India as "deeply satisfying."

Every public office, he said, must be viewed not as one of power but as "an opportunity to serve society and the nation."

Referring to his admiration for Dr B R Ambedkar and his father, a politician who was a close associate of the Constitution's chief architect, he said his judicial philosophy was shaped by Ambedkar's commitment to social, economic and political justice.

"I always tried to balance fundamental rights with the Directive Principles of State Policy," he said, noting many of his judgments strived to harmonise constitutional freedom with the needs of sustainable development and environmental protection. Quoting the judicial principle that "a judge must not alter the material but may iron out the creases," Gavai said it was a guiding philosophy throughout his tenure.

He noted that environmental matters have been close to his heart and spoke about his long association with environmental, ecological and wildlife issues.

"In all these years, I tried to protect the rights of citizens while ensuring that the environment and wildlife were preserved," he said.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta recalled meeting him as a puisne judge and said, "You never changed as a human being."