Centre appoints Chief Justices of 6 High Courts and Acting Chief Justice for Punjab and Haryana High Court

Issuing a slew of Notifications on 02-02-2024¹, the Ministry of Law and Justice notified the appointment of Chief Justices of 6 High Courts namely- Allahabad, Gauhati, Meghalaya, Rajasthan, Orissa and Uttaranchal. Furthermore, the Ministry also notified the appointment of Acting Chief Justice for Punjab and Haryana High Court.

The President in exercise of the powers conferred by Article 217(1) of the Constitution, appointed the following Judges as Chief Justices-

Appointment of Chief Justices

Allahabad High Court

Justice Arun Bhansali, Judge, Rajasthan High Court, to be the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court, with effect from the date he assumes charge of his office.

Gauhati High Court

Justice Vijay Bishnoi, Judge of the Rajasthan High Court, to be Chief Justice of the Gauhati High Court, with effect from the date he assumes charge of his office.

Meghalaya High Court

Justice S. Vaidyanathan, Judge of the Madras High Court, to be Chief Justice of the Meghalaya High Court, with effect from the date he assumes charge of his office.

Rajasthan High Court

Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava, Judge of the Rajasthan High Court, to be the Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court with effect from the date he assumes charge of his office.

Orissa High Court

Justice Chakradhari Sharan Singh, Judge of the Patna High Court, to be Chief Justice of the Orissa High Court, with effect from the date he assumes charge of his office.

Uttaranchal High Court

Justice Ritu Bahri, Judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, to be Chief Justice of the Uttaranchal High Court, with effect from the date she assumes charge of her office.

Justice Ritu Bahri’s elevation would enhance representation of women among the Chief Justices of the High Courts.

Appointment of Acting Chief Justice for Punjab and Haryana High Court

In exercise of the powers conferred by Article 223 of the Constitution, the President appointed Justice Gurmeet Singh Sandhawalia, Judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, as Acting Chief Justice of the High Court with effect from the date Justice Ritu Bahri relinquishes the charge of Acting Chief Justice consequent upon her elevation as Chief Justice of the Uttaranchal High Court.

How Many Supreme Court Collegium Recommendations were Approved?

The Supreme Court Collegium in November 2023 and December 2023, recommended names of Judges for the vacant posts of Chief Justice for the High Courts of Meghalaya, Orissa, Uttaranchal, Allahabad, Gauhati, Jharkhand, Punjab and Haryana and Rajasthan.

So far, the Ministry has approved all the names recommended by the Collegium vis-à-vis appointment of Chief Justices for Allahabad, Gauhati, Meghalaya, Rajasthan, Orissa and Uttaranchal.

The Ministry is yet to notify the appointment of Chief Justices for Jharkhand and Punjab and Haryana High Courts.

The Supreme Court Collegium had recommended Justice B R Sarangi, as next Chief Justice of Jharkhand High Court and Justice Sheel Nagu, as next Chief Justice of High Court of Punjab and Haryana.