SC collegium recommends names of three HC chief justices as Supreme Court judges

PTI, Nov 7, 2023, 10:18 AM IST

The Supreme Court collegium headed by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud on Monday recommended the names of three high court chief justices as judges of the apex court.

The collegium, also comprising Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Justice Sanjiv Khanna, Justice B R Gavai and Justice Surya Kant recommended the names of Delhi High Court Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma, Rajasthan High Court Chief Justice Augustine George Masih and Gauhati High Court Chief Justice Sandeep Mehta as judges of the Supreme Court of India.

It said that after carefully evaluating the merit, integrity and competence of eligible chief justices and senior puisne judges of the high courts and also accommodating a plurality of considerations, the collegium finds them to be deserving and suitable in all respects for being appointed as judges of the Supreme Court of India.

”In view of the foregoing, the Collegium further resolves to recommend that the appointments of the above persons be made in the following order of seniority: i. Justice Satish Chandra Sharma, ii. Justice Augustine George Masih, and iii. Justice Sandeep Mehta,” the resolution said.

If cleared by the Centre, the top court will have the full strength of 34 judges.

At present, the top court is working with 31 judges after the superannuation of Justice S Ravindra Bhat, who retired on October 20, Justice V Ramasubramanian and Justice Krishna Murari who retired in June and July, respectively.

The five-judge collegium in its resolution of the meeting held on Monday said, ”In view of the ever-mounting pendency of cases, the workload of judges has increased considerably. Bearing in mind the above, it has become necessary to ensure that the court has full working judge-strength leaving no vacancy at any point of time. Bearing in mind the above, the Collegium has decided to fill up all three existing vacancies by recommending names.” It said the collegium deliberated on and discussed the names of chief justices and senior puisne judges of the high courts eligible for appointment to the Supreme Court. ”Judgments authored by those falling in the zone of consideration for elevation to the Supreme Court were circulated among the members of the Collegium, well in advance, for a meaningful discussion on and assessment of their judicial acumen,” the resolution stated.

It added that the Centre for Research and Planning of the Supreme Court has prepared a compilation of relevant background material to assist it. The resolution further stated that while recommending appointments to the Supreme Court, the collegium has taken into consideration the seniority of chief justices and senior puisne judges in their parent high courts as well as overall seniority of the high court judges; the merit, performance and integrity of the judges under consideration; and the need to ensure diversity.

The collegium also considered the aspect of inclusion in the Supreme Court by representation of high courts which are not represented or are inadequately represented in the apex court, appointment of persons from marginalised and backward segments of society, gender diversity and representation of minorities.

Justice Sharma was appointed as a Judge of the Madhya Pradesh High Court on January 18, 2008, and was elevated as Chief Justice of the High Court for Telangana on October 11, 2021, and thereafter transferred to Delhi High Court on June 28, 2022. ”Justice Satish Chandra Sharma has served as a judge of the high court for more than 15 years and as chief justice of the high court for more than two years. The judgments authored by him deal with issues in various branches of law stand testimony to his legal acumen and competence. ”Before his elevation as a judge of the high court of Madhya Pradesh, he practised in constitutional, service, civil and criminal matters,” the resolution noted. It said Justice Sharma stands at serial number two in the combined all-India seniority of High Court Judges. In the seniority of judges hailing from Madhya Pradesh High Court, he stands at serial number one, it added. Justice A G Masih was appointed as a judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court on July 10, 2008, and was elevated as Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court on May 30, 2023. ”During his long tenure as a judge of the high court Justice Masih has acquired significant experience in diverse fields of law. Before his elevation, he practised in constitutional, service, labour, and civil matters. Justice Masih stands at serial number seven in the combined all-India seniority of high court judges and in the seniority of judges hailing from the High Court of Punjab and Haryana, he stands at serial number one,” the resolution said, adding that Justice Masih belongs to a minority community.

About Justice Mehta, the resolution said he was appointed as a judge of the Rajasthan High Court on May 30, 2011, and having attained seniority in his parent high court, he was elevated as the chief justice of the Gauhati High Court and is serving there since February 15, 2023. ”The Rajasthan High Court, which is his parent High Court, is a large High Court which does not have representation on the bench of the Supreme Court. Justice Mehta has served as a judge of the High Court for more than 12 years.

”During his long tenure as a judge of the Rajasthan High Court and as Chief Justice of the Gauhati High Court, Justice Mehta has acquired significant adjudicatory experience,” the collegium said.

It added that before his elevation, Justice Mehta practised before trial courts, the high court and the Supreme Court, mainly in constitutional and criminal laws and the judgments authored by him dealing with issues in various branches of law stand testimony to his legal acumen and competence. ”Justice Mehta stands at serial number 23 in the combined all-India seniority of High Court Judges. In the seniority of Judges hailing from the High Court of Rajasthan, he stands at serial number one.

”Apart from according representation to the State of Rajasthan, the appointment of Justice Mehta will provide a value addition in terms of his acquired knowledge and experience,” the resolution said.