Chief Justice of India NV Ramana on Thursday set in motion the appointment process for his successor by recommending the name of justice Uday U Lalit, the most senior judge in the top court, to the Union government.
On Thursday morning, CJI Ramana arrived at justice Lalit’s residence to personally hand over a copy of his recommendation letter.
Ramana is scheduled to retire on August 26. His recommendation paves the way for justice Lalit to take over as the 49th CJI on August 27.
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Justice Lalit’s tenure as CJI will last for less than three months as he is scheduled to retire on November 8.
When he takes the helm on August 27, justice Lalit will be the second CJI after justice SM Sikri to be elevated as a top court judge directly from the Bar. Justice Sikri was the CJI between 1971 and 1973. Justice Lalit was appointed a judge in the Supreme Court in August 2014.
Justice Ramana’s recommendation came in response to a missive from the Union law ministry on Wednesday night, seeking his choice of successor — a convention followed by the ministry.
{{/usCountry}}Justice Ramana’s recommendation came in response to a missive from the Union law ministry on Wednesday night, seeking his choice of successor — a convention followed by the ministry.
{{/usCountry}}Usually, the incumbent responds 30 days before his retirement and recommends the name of the senior most judge in the apex court.
In the Second Judges Case in 1993, the top court held that appointment to the office of the CJI should be of the most senior judge of the Supreme Court “considered fit to hold the office”. Subsequently, a memorandum of procedure (MoP) was framed to guide appointment and transfers of judges in constitutional courts.
“The Union Minister of Law and Justice would, at the appropriate time, seek the recommendation of the outgoing CJI of India for the appointment of the next CJI...After receipt of the recommendation of the CJI, the Union Minister of Law and Justice will put up the recommendation to the Prime Minister, who will advise the President in the matter of appointment,” reads the MoP.
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This time, however, the law ministry delayed the letter seeking CJI Ramana’s recommendation, which in turn, delayed the process of naming justice Lalit as the next CJI.
As reported by HT on Thursday, the hold up on the successor’s recommendation also cast a long shadow on the Wednesday collegium meeting which ended in an impasse, compelling CJI Ramana to leave it to justice Lalit to preside over the next collegium meetings for taking several key decisions on vacancies in the top court as well as appointments and transfers of high court chief justices.
After Ramana retires, the Supreme Court will have 30 judges against a sanctioned strength of 34. Justice Lalit will have justices Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud, Sanjay Kishan Kaul, SA Nazeer and Indira Banerjee as colleagues in the collegium.