Collegium names judges for 4 Supreme Court vacancies

Source: thehindu.com

Suggestions made for appointment of Chief Justices in 8 High Courts

The Supreme Court Collegium led by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi has made a slew of recommendations to fill four vacancies in the Supreme Court and for appointments of Chief Justices in eight High Courts across the country.

On Friday the Supreme Court published its resolutions recommending Chief Justices of Punjab and Haryana, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh and Kerala High Courts – Justices Krishna Murari, S. Ravindra Bhat, V. Ramasubramanian and Hrishikesh Roy — for appointment to the Supreme Court.

The Collegium, while recommending the four judges, has “kept in mind the desirability of giving due representation on the Bench of the Supreme Court, as far as possible, to all the High Courts. The Collegium is also conscious of the fact that some High Courts are going to be unrepresented in the Supreme Court.”

All the recommendations were made on August 28.

The Collegium has reconsidered its April 8, 2019 recommendation to appoint Justice Vikram Nath, the senior-most judge of the Allahabad High Court, as Chief Justice of the Andhra Pradesh High Court.

Instead, Justice Nath has now been recommended for appointment as Chief Justice of the Gujarat High Court.

Justice J.K. Maheshwari, senior puisne judge of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, has been recommended as Chief Justice of Andhra Pradesh High Court.

Justice Ajai Lamba, the senior-most judge from the Punjab and Haryana High Court and now functioning on transfer in the Allahabad High Court, has been recommended for appointment as Chief Justice of the Gauhati High Court.

Justice Ravi Shankar Jha, a senior puisne judge from the Madhya Pradesh High Court, has been recommended for appointment as Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Justice L. Narayana Swamy, the senior-most judge from the Karnataka HC, has been recommended for appointment as Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court.

Justice S. Manikumar, the senior-most judge from the Madras High Court, has been recommended as Chief Justice of the Kerala High Court to replace Justice Roy.

To replace Justice Bhat, the Collegium has recommended Justice Indrajit Mahanty, the senior-most judge from the Orissa High Court who is now functioning on transfer in the Bombay High Court, as Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court.

Finally, Justice Arup Kumar Goswami, the senior-most judge from the Gauhati High Court, has been recommended for appointment as Chief Justice of the Sikkim High Court.