Justice TS Thakur to become next Chief Justice of India

Justice TS Thakur will succeed Justice HL Dattu as the next Chief Justice of India, official sources announced on Tuesday. Justice Thakur, the senior-most judge of the apex court, will take over as the CJI after Justice Dattu retires on December 2.

Justice Tirath Singh Thakur — the senior most judge of the Supreme Court — would be the next Chief Justice of India (CJI). The present CJI HL Dattu has proposed Justice TS Thakur’s name as his successor. Justice Dattu retires on December 2.

A file photo of Justice TS Thakur. Thakur will sycceed Justice HL Dattu as the next Chief Justice of India. (PTI Photo)

Initiating the process for the appointment of his successor, CJI Dattu wrote a letter written to the Centre proposing Justice Thakur’s name for the top post.

The law ministry would now proceed with the process to appoint Thakur. After clearing his file, the recommendation would be sent to the Prime Minister’s Office. A formal notification would be issued after the President clears the Warrant of Appointment.

Born at Batroo in Ramban district of Jammu and Kashmir on January 4 1952, Justice Thakur would have a year-long tenure before he retires in January 2017.

Elevated to the SC on November 17, 2009, Justice Thakur has the credit of taking steps to clean up the cricket administration when he delivered the verdict in the Indian Premier League spot-fixing and betting scandal in January this year. His bench ordered constitution of the Justice RM Lodha committee that shall suggest measures to make the world’s richest Cricket body — BCCI — transparent and accountable.

Justice Thakur, who regularly plays badminton to de-stress, started his career at his father — former governor of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh DD Thakur’s law chambers in Jammu and Kashmir.

A litigator at heart, Justice Thakur practised largely out of the Jammu and Kashmir high court.