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Chief Justice of India

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Chief Justice of India
Bhārata kē Mukhya Nyāyādhīśa
Insignia of the SCI
Supreme court Flag
Incumbent
Sanjiv Khanna
Supreme Court
TypeChief Justice
StatusPresiding Judge of Supreme Court of India
AbbreviationCJI
Residence5, Krishna Menon Marg, Sunehri Bagh, New Delhi, India[1]
SeatSupreme Court of India, New Delhi, India
NominatorOutgoing Chief Justice of India, generally on the basis of Seniority
AppointerPresident of India
Term lengthUntil the age of 65[2]
Constituting instrumentConstitution of India (under Article 124)
Formation26 January 1950; 74 years ago (1950-01-26)
First holderH. J. Kania (1950–1951)[3]
Succession6th (on the Indian order of precedence)
Salary280,000 (US$3,400) (per month)[4]
Websitesci.gov.in

The Chief Justice of India (CJI) (ISO: Bhārata kē Mukhya Nyāyādhīśa) is the chief judge of the Supreme Court of India and the highest-ranking officer of the Indian judiciary. The Constitution of India grants power to the President of India to appoint, as recommended by the outgoing chief justice in consultation with other judges, (as envisaged in Article 124 (2) of the Constitution)[5] the next Chief Justice, who will serve until they reach the age of 65 or are removed by the constitutional process of impeachment.

As per convention, the successor suggested by the incumbent chief justice is most often the next most senior judge of the Supreme Court. However, this convention has been broken twice. In 1973, Justice A. N. Ray was appointed, superseding three senior judges, and in 1977 when Justice Mirza Hameedullah Beg was appointed as Chief Justice, superseding Justice Hans Raj Khanna.

As head of the Supreme Court, the chief justice is responsible for the allocation of cases and appointment of constitutional benches that deal with important matters of law.[6] In accordance with Article 145 of the Constitution of India and the Supreme Court Rules of Procedure of 1966, the chief justice has to allocate work to the other judges who are bound to refer the matter back to them (for re-allocation) in any case where they require it to be looked into by another group of experienced judges.

On the administrative side, the Chief Justice carries out functions of maintenance of the roster, appointment of court officials, and general and miscellaneous matters relating to the supervision and functioning of the Supreme Court. The Chief Justice is de facto Chancellor of National Law School of India University.

The 51st and present Chief Justice is Sanjiv Khanna. He was sworn in as Chief Justice on 11 November 2024.[7]

Appointment

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As the incumbent Chief Justice approaches retirement, the Ministry of Law and Justice seeks a recommendation from the incumbent Chief Justice. Consultations with other judges might also take place. The recommendation is then presented to the prime minister, who will advice the President in the matter of appointment.[8]

Removal

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Article 124(4) of the Constitution of India lays down the procedure for the removal of a judge of the Supreme Court, which is applicable to Chief Justices as well. Once appointed, the Chief Justice remains in office until age 65. There is no fixed tenure provided in the constitution. [citation needed] He can be removed only through a process of removal by Parliament as follows:

A Judge of the Supreme Court shall not be removed from his office except by an order of the President passed after an address by each House of Parliament supported by a majority of the total membership of that House and by a majority of not less than two-thirds of the members of that House present and voting has been presented to the President in the same session for such removal on the ground of proved misbehaviour or incapacity.

— Article 124(4), Constitution of India, [9]

Acting president

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The President (Discharge of Functions) Act, 1969 specifies the Chief Justice of India shall act as the president of India in the event of the offices of both the president and the vice president being vacant.[10] When President Zakir Hussain died in office, Vice President V. V. Giri acted as the president. Later, V V Giri resigned as the vice president, the chief justice, Justice Mohammad Hidayatullah became the acting president of India. As per the convention, the senior most judge of the Supreme Court become the acting Chief Justice. When the newly elected president took office a month later, Justice Hidayatullah reverted as the Chief Justice of India.

Remuneration

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The Constitution of India gives the power of deciding remuneration as well as other conditions of service of the chief justice to the Parliament of India. Accordingly, such provisions have been laid down in The Supreme Court Judges (Salaries and Conditions of Service) Act, 1958.[11][12] This remuneration was revised in 2006–2008 after the Sixth Central Pay Commission's recommendation.[13] According to the Seventh pay commission, in 2016, the salary was revised.[14]

List of Chief Justices of India

[edit]
Key
Died in office
Resigned
No. Name
(birth–death)
Image Start of Term End of Term Length of Term Parent High Court Appointed by
(President of India)
Ref.
1 Harilal Jekisundas Kania
(1890–1951)
Harilal Jekisundas Kania 26 January 1950 6 November 1951 1 year, 284 days Bombay Rajendra Prasad [15]
2 Mandakolathur Patanjali Sastri
(1889–1963)
Mandakolathur Patanjali Sastri 7 November 1951 3 January 1954 2 years, 57 days Madras [16]
3 Mehr Chand Mahajan
(1889–1967)
Mehr Chand Mahajan 4 January 1954 22 December 1954 352 days Lahore [17]
4 Bijan Kumar Mukherjea
(1891–1956)
Bijan Kumar Mukherjea 23 December 1954 31 January 1956 1 year, 39 days Calcutta [18]
5 Sudhi Ranjan Das
(1894–1977)
Sudhi Ranjan Das 1 February 1956 30 September 1959 3 years, 241 days Calcutta [19]
6 Bhuvaneshwar Prasad Sinha
(1899–1986)
Bhuvaneshwar Prasad Sinha 1 October 1959 31 January 1964 4 years, 122 days Patna [20]
7 Pralhad Balacharya Gajendragadkar
(1901–1981)
Pralhad Balacharya Gajendragadkar 1 February 1964 15 March 1966 2 years, 42 days Bombay Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan [21]
8 Amal Kumar Sarkar
(1901–2001)
Amal Kumar Sarkar 16 March 1966 29 June 1966 105 days Calcutta [22]
9 Koka Subba Rao
(1902–1976)
Koka Subba Rao 30 June 1966 11 April 1967 285 days Hyderabad [23]
10 Kailas Nath Wanchoo
(1903–1988)
Kailas Nath Wanchoo 12 April 1967 24 February 1968 318 days Allahabad [24]
11 Mohammad Hidayatullah
(1905–1992)[a]
Mohammad Hidayatullah 25 February 1968 16 December 1970 2 years, 294 days Bombay Zakir Hussain [25]
12 Jayantilal Chhotalal Shah
(1906–1991)
Jayantilal Chhotalal Shah 17 December 1970 21 January 1971 35 days Bombay V. V. Giri [26]
13 Sarv Mittra Sikri
(1908–1992)
Sarv Mittra Sikri 22 January 1971 25 April 1973 2 years, 93 days Bar Council [27]
14 Ajit Nath Ray
(1912–2009)
Ajit Nath Ray 26 April 1973 28 January 1977 3 years, 276 days Calcutta [28]
15 Mirza Hameedullah Beg
(1913–1988)
Mirza Hameedullah Beg 29 January 1977 21 February 1978 1 year, 24 days Allahabad Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed [29]
16 Yeshwant Vishnu Chandrachud
(1920–2008)
Yeshwant Vishnu Chandrachud 22 February 1978 11 July 1985 7 years, 139 days Bombay Neelam Sanjiva Reddy [30]
17 Prafullachandra Natwarlal Bhagwati
(1921–2017)
Prafullachandra Natwarlal Bhagwati 12 July 1985 20 December 1986 1 year, 161 days Gujarat Zail Singh [31]
18 Raghunandan Swarup Pathak
(1924–2007)
Raghunandan Swarup Pathak 21 December 1986 18 June 1989 2 years, 209 days Allahabad [32]
19 Engalaguppe Seetharamiah Venkataramiah
(1924–1997)
E. S. Venkataramiah 19 June 1989 17 December 1989 181 days Karnataka Ramaswamy Venkataraman [33]
20 Sabyasachi Mukharji
(1927–1990)
Sabyasachi Mukharji 18 December 1989 25 September 1990 281 days Calcutta [34]
21 Ranganath Misra
(1926–2012)
Ranganath Misra 26 September 1990 24 November 1991 1 year, 59 days Orissa [35]
22 Kamal Narain Singh
(1926–2022)
Kamal Narain Singh 25 November 1991 12 December 1991 17 days Allahabad [36]
23 Madhukar Hiralal Kania
(1927–2016)
Madhukar Hiralal Kania 13 December 1991 17 November 1992 340 days Bombay [37]
24 Lalit Mohan Sharma
(1928–2008)
Lalit Mohan Sharma 18 November 1992 11 February 1993 85 days Patna Shankar Dayal Sharma [38]
25 Manepalli Narayanarao Venkatachaliah
(born 1929)
M. N. Venkatachaliah 12 February 1993 24 October 1994 1 year, 254 days Karnataka [39]
26 Aziz Mushabber Ahmadi
(1932–2023)
Aziz Mushabber Ahmadi 25 October 1994 24 March 1997 2 years, 150 days Gujarat [40]
27 Jagdish Sharan Verma
(1933–2013)
Jagdish Sharan Verma 25 March 1997 17 January 1998 298 days Madhya Pradesh [41]
28 Madan Mohan Punchhi
(1933–2015)
Madan Mohan Punchhi 18 January 1998 9 October 1998 264 days Punjab and Haryana K. R. Narayanan [42]
29 Adarsh Sein Anand
(1936–2017)
Adarsh Sein Anand 10 October 1998 31 October 2001 3 years, 21 days Jammu and Kashmir [43]
30 Sam Piroj Bharucha
(born 1937)
Sam Piroj Bharucha 1 November 2001 5 May 2002 185 days Bombay [44]
31 Bhupinder Nath Kirpal
(born 1937)
Bhupinder Nath Kirpal 6 May 2002 7 November 2002 185 days Delhi [45]
32 Gopal Ballav Pattanaik
(born 1937)
Gopal Ballav Pattanaik 8 November 2002 18 December 2002 40 days Orissa A. P. J. Abdul Kalam [46]
33 Vishweshwar Nath Khare
(born 1939)
Vishweshwar Nath Khare 19 December 2002 1 May 2004 1 year, 134 days Allahabad [47]
34 S. Rajendra Babu
(born 1939)
S. Rajendra Babu 2 May 2004 31 May 2004 29 days Karnataka [48]
35 Ramesh Chandra Lahoti
(1940–2022)
Ramesh Chandra Lahoti 1 June 2004 31 October 2005 1 year, 152 days Madhya Pradesh [49]
36 Yogesh Kumar Sabharwal
(1942–2015)
Yogesh Kumar Sabharwal 1 November 2005 13 January 2007 1 year, 73 days Delhi [50]
37 Konakuppakatil Gopinathan Balakrishnan
(born 1945)
Konakuppakatil Gopinathan Balakrishnan 14 January 2007 11 May 2010 3 years, 117 days Kerala [51]
38 Sarosh Homi Kapadia
(1947–2016)
Sarosh Homi Kapadia 12 May 2010 28 September 2012 2 years, 139 days Bombay Pratibha Patil [52]
39 Altamas Kabir
(1948–2017)
Altamas Kabir 29 September 2012 18 July 2013 292 days Calcutta Pranab Mukherjee [53]
40 Palanisamy Sathasivam
(born 1949)
Palanisamy Sathasivam 19 July 2013 26 April 2014 281 days Madras [54]
41 Rajendra Mal Lodha
(born 1949)
Rajendra Mal Lodha 27 April 2014 27 September 2014 153 days Rajasthan [55]
42 Handyala Lakshminarayanaswamy Dattu
(born 1950)
Handyala Lakshminarayanaswamy Dattu 28 September 2014 2 December 2015 1 year, 65 days Karnataka [56]
43 Tirath Singh Thakur
(born 1952)
Tirath Singh Thakur 3 December 2015 3 January 2017 1 year, 31 days Jammu and Kashmir [57]
44 Jagdish Singh Khehar
(born 1952)
Jagdish Singh Khehar 4 January 2017 27 August 2017 235 days Punjab and Haryana [58]
45 Dipak Misra
(born 1953)
Dipak Misra 28 August 2017 2 October 2018 1 year, 35 days Orissa Ram Nath Kovind [59]
46 Ranjan Gogoi
(born 1954)
Ranjan Gogoi 3 October 2018 17 November 2019 1 year, 45 days Gauhati [60]
47 Sharad Arvind Bobde
(born 1956)
Sharad Arvind Bobde 18 November 2019[61] 23 April 2021 1 year, 156 days Bombay [62]
48 Nuthalapati Venkata Ramana
(born 1957)
Nuthalapati Venkata Ramana 24 April 2021 26 August 2022 1 year, 124 days Andhra Pradesh [63]
49 Uday Umesh Lalit
(born 1957)
Uday Umesh Lalit 27 August 2022 8 November 2022 73 days Bar Council Droupadi Murmu [64]
50 Dhananjaya Yeshwant Chandrachud
(born 1959)
Dhananjaya Yeshwant Chandrachud 9 November 2022 10 November 2024 2 years, 1 day Bombay [65]
51 Sanjiv Khanna
(born 1960)
Sanjiv Khanna 11 November 2024 Incumbent 29 days Delhi [66]

See also

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Current Judiciary

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Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ Also served as acting President of India and Vice President of India

References

[edit]
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  6. ^ Saxena, Namit (23 December 2016). "New Captain Of The Ship, Change In Sailing Rules Soon?". Live Law. Archived from the original on 24 December 2016. Retrieved 24 December 2016.
  7. ^ Justice Sanjiv Khanna commences judicial proceedings as 51st CJI, thanks lawyers
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  13. ^ Archived copy (PDF). 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 June 2020. Retrieved 17 December 2018.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference sci-hjkania was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
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  48. ^ "Justice S Rajendra Babu". Supreme Court of India. Archived from the original on 28 January 2024. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
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  53. ^ "Justice Altamas Kabir". Supreme Court of India. Archived from the original on 30 April 2024. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
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  66. ^ "Justice Sanjiv Khanna". Supreme Court of India. Archived from the original on 11 November 2024. Retrieved 11 November 2024.
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