SC collegium recommends appointment of chief justices in eight high courts

The Supreme Court has recommended the appointment of chief justices for the high courts of Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Madras and Meghalaya.

The collegium headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud and also comprising justices Sanjiv Khanna and B R Gavai made the recommendations after considering the names of judges from different high courts by taking into account their seniority and performance, and the need to provide representation in the different high courts.

Justice Manmohan, who is the acting chief justice of the Delhi High Court, has been recommended as the chief justice of the court.

"He was appointed as a judge of the High Court of Delhi on 13 March 2008, and is due to retire on 16 December 2024. Justice Manmohan ranks at Sl No 3 in the All India Seniority list of high court judges.

"Bearing in mind the memorandum of procedure, Mr justice Manmohan can be appointed as the chief justice of his parent high court, at this stage. The collegium, therefore, recommends that Mr justice Manmohan be appointed as chief justice of the High Court of Delhi," a resolution passed by the collegium said.

The collegium recommended the name of justice Rajiv Shakdher for appointment as the chief justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court.

"On the transfer of Mr Justice M S Ramachandra Rao, chief justice of the High Court of Himachal Pradesh as chief justice of the High Court of Jharkhand, consequent upon the retirement of Dr justice Bidyut Ranjan Sarangi on 19 July 2024, there would be a vacancy in the office of the chief justice of that high court," it said.

"Mr justice Rajiv Shakdher was appointed as a judge of the high court on 11 April 2008 and ranks at Sl No 4 in the All India Seniority list of high court judges. He is one of the senior-most Judges in the country," the resolution said.

"The collegium, therefore, recommends that Mr justice Rajiv Shakdher be appointed as chief justice of the High Court of Himachal Pradesh in the vacancy caused by the transfer of Mr justice M S Ramachandra Rao to the High Court of Jharkhand, consequent upon the retirement of Dr justice Bidyut Ranjan Sarangi," it said.

By a separate resolution, the collegium has recommended the appointment of justice Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh, chief justice of the Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court as a judge of the Supreme Court.

"On his appointment, there would be a vacancy in the office of chief justice of the High Court for Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. Mr justice Suresh Kumar Kait is a senior judge of the High Court of Delhi, who was appointed on 5 September 2008. He belongs to the Scheduled Caste category," the collegium said.

"Mr justice Suresh Kumar Kait ranks at Sl No 5 in the All India Seniority list of high court judges, including chief justices. He is due to retire on 23 May 2025. The judges of the High Court of Delhi who are senior to Mr justice Suresh Kumar Kait are due to retire in the near future," it said.

Bearing in mind the position of Mr justice Kait in the All India Seniority list, the collegium is of the view that he should be recommended for appointment as the chief justice of the Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court, the collegium said.

The collegium recommended the name of justice G S Sandhawalia as the chief justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, noting that he is the senior-most puisne judge of the high court.

The name of justice Nitin Madhukar Jamdar has been recommended as the chief justice of the Kerala High Court and justice Tashi Rabstan as the chief justice of the Meghalaya High Court.

"Justice Tashi Rabstan is the senior-most puisne Judge of the High Court for Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. He was appointed as a judge on 8 March 2013 and is due to retire on 9 April 2025. He hails from Ladakh. Mr justice Dhiraj Singh Thakur, who is presently serving as the chief justice of the High Court of Andhra Pradesh, was appointed as a Judge of the High Court for Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh," the collegium said.

"Bearing in mind that Mr justice Tashi Rabstan would be the first chief justice from the region of Ladakh which has otherwise little or no representation among the judges of the high court and no representation at all so far in the office of chief justice, the collegium recommends his appointment as Chief Justice of the High Court of Meghalaya on the retirement of Mr justice S Vaidyanathan, Chief Justice of that High Court, who is due to retire on 16 August 2024," it said.

The collegium noted that there is a vacancy in the office of the chief justice of the Madras High Court after the retirement of Justice Sanjay V Gangapurwala on 23 May 2024, and recommended name of Justice K R Shriram as its chief justice.

"Justice K R Shriram is the second senior-most puisne Judge of the High Court of Bombay. He was appointed on 21 June 2013. Bearing in mind that Mr justice K R Shriram is a senior Judge of the High Court of Bombay with experience on the judicial and administrative side, the collegium recommends his appointment as chief justice of the High Court of Madras," it said.

In a separate resolution, the collegium recommended the transfer of justice M S Ramachandra Rao, the current chief justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court.

"A vacancy in the office of chief justice in the High Court of Jharkhand would arise on the retirement of Dr justice Bidyut Ranjan Sarangi on 19 July 2024. Considering the seniority of Mr justice M S Ramachandra Rao and the exigencies of the administration of justice, the collegium considers it appropriate in the public interest to recommend his transfer as chief justice of the High Court of Jharkhand consequent upon the retirement of Dr justice Bidyut Ranjan Sarangi. The Collegium recommends accordingly," the collegium said.