Delhi HC confers ‘senior advocate’ designation on 85 lawyers

New DelhiThe Delhi High Court on Thursday conferred the designation of “senior advocate” on 85 lawyers following a rigorous selection process, with a strong emphasis on enhancing women’s representation and recognising a diverse group of legal practitioners with the coveted distinction

New Delhi

According to people aware of the development, the decision was taken after a comprehensive assessment of more than 200 candidates. (Representative photo)

The Delhi High Court on Thursday conferred the designation of “senior advocate” on 85 lawyers following a rigorous selection process, with a strong emphasis on enhancing women’s representation and recognising a diverse group of legal practitioners with the coveted distinction.

The list was released following a full court meeting held on Thursday evening.

According to people aware of the development, the decision was taken after a comprehensive assessment of more than 200 candidates, who were interviewed on various aspects of the law by the Permanent Committee.

The Permanent Committee comprises chief justice DK Upadhyaya, justices V Kameswar Rao and Nitin Sambre, additional solicitor general Chetan Sharma, and Delhi High Court Bar Association president and senior advocate N Hariharan.

The list comprises 11 women advocates, including Zoheb Hossain, who has appeared as the Enforcement Directorate’s special counsel before the Delhi High Court and trial courts in high-profile cases, including the Delhi excise policy case; and Anupam S Sharma, who has appeared for the Central Bureau of Investigation in cases involving former minister P Chidambaram and his son Karti Chidambaram.

The list also includes advocates Sanjay Lao and Sanjeev Bhandari, who represent the Delhi government in criminal matters before the high court, and MA Niyazi, who appears for the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) before the high court.

Others named in the list include Amit Prasad, who has served as the special public prosecutor in cases pertaining to the northeast Delhi riots, and Sandeep Mahapatra, the Centre’s standing counsel before the Delhi High Court. Both their names have been recommended by the Delhi High Court Collegium for appointment as judges.

The high court’s decision to designate additional senior advocates, following its November 2024 exercise in which 70 advocates were conferred the designation, complied with the Supreme Court’s April 15, 2025 directions. The direction was issued on a petition filed by advocate Raman Gandhi, who challenged the November 2024 decision following the rejection of his application. He alleged that the Delhi High Court Bar Association (DHCBA) had a role in clearing the names of even those lawyers who faced disciplinary proceedings.

The Supreme Court directed the Delhi High Court’s Permanent Committee on designation of “senior advocates” to reconsider the cases of advocates whose names had been placed in the deferred and rejected lists. It noted that of the 302 applicants, 70 had been designated senior advocates, 67 had been placed on the deferred list and 165 applications had been rejected. It observed that the previous committee had failed to take into account the marks awarded by senior advocate Sudhir Nandrajog, one of its members. Nandrajog had resigned from the committee in protest a day after the list of newly designated senior advocates was published in November 2025.

HT was the first to report in November 2024 that the process of designating senior advocates in the Delhi High Court was shrouded in controversy, with a key member of the Permanent Committee refusing to sign the final list of lawyers slated for the prestigious title, alleging that the same was never finalised and forwarded without his consent.