In a major round of judicial appointments and transfers, the Central Government has cleared the elevation of five High Court judges as Chief Justices and approved the transfer of four Chief Justices and nineteen other judges across various High Courts. The decisions, based on the Supreme Court Collegium’s recommendations of May 26, have been formally notified by the Ministry of Law and Justice.

Five Judges Elevated as Chief Justices:

Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva, who was serving as Acting Chief Justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, has now been appointed as its Chief Justice. Similarly, Justice Vibhu Bakhru of the Delhi High Court has been appointed as the Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court.

Justice Ashutosh Kumar, formerly the Acting Chief Justice of the Patna High Court, has been elevated as the Chief Justice of the Gauhati High Court. Meanwhile, Justice Vipul Manubhai Pancholi, who was serving as a judge of the Patna High Court, has been appointed its Chief Justice.

Justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan, a senior puisne judge of the Himachal Pradesh High Court, has been appointed as the Chief Justice of the Jharkhand High Court.

Transfers of Chief Justices:

The reshuffle also includes inter se transfers of four Chief Justices:-

  1. Justice M.M. Shrivastava, presently Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court, has been transferred as the Chief Justice of the Madras High Court.
  2. Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh, Chief Justice of the Tripura High Court, will now serve as the Chief Justice of the Telangana High Court.
  3. Justice M.S. Ramachandra Rao, currently Chief Justice of the Jharkhand High Court, has been posted as Chief Justice of the Tripura High Court.
  4. Justice K.R. Shriram, Chief Justice of the Madras High Court, has been shifted as Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court.

Transfer of Nineteen High Court Judges:

A total of nineteen High Court judges have also been transferred, affecting judicial composition across eleven High Courts:-

From Telangana High Court

  1. Justice Sujoy Paul – Transferred to Calcutta High Court
  2. Justice T. Vinod Kumar – Transferred to Madras High Court

From Allahabad High Court

  1. Justice Om Prakash Shukla – To Delhi High Court
  2. Justice Jayanti Banerji – To Karnataka High Court
  3. Justice Vivek Chaudhary – To Delhi High Court
  4. Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra – To Punjab and Haryana High Court

From Rajasthan High Court

  1. Justice Arun Kumar Monga – To Delhi High Court
  2. Justice Shri Chandrashekhar – To Bombay High Court

From Punjab and Haryana High Court

  1. Justice Sudhir Singh – To Patna High Court
  2. Justice Anil Kshetrapal – To Delhi High Court
  3. Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma – To Rajasthan High Court

From Madras High Court

  1. Justice Vivek Kumar Singh – To Madhya Pradesh High Court
  2. Justice Battu Devanand – To Andhra Pradesh High Court

From Kerala High Court

  1. Justice Dinesh Kumar Singh – To Karnataka High Court

From Gauhati High Court

  1. Justice Suman Shyam – To Bombay High Court
  2. Justice Manash Ranjan Pathak – To Orissa High Court
  3. Justice Lanusungkum Jamir – To Calcutta High Court

From Bombay High Court

  1. Justice Nitin Wasudeo Sambre – To Delhi High Court

From Karnataka High Court

  1. Justice V. Kameswar Rao – To Delhi High Court

The series of elevations and transfers reflects a continued effort to address regional judicial needs, redistribute judicial manpower, and enhance administrative efficiency across High Courts. The notifications come amidst ongoing discussions on the Centre’s role in judicial appointments and the pace of implementation of Collegium recommendations.

 

Picture Source :

 
Ruchi Sharma