As reported earlier, the Supreme Court Collegium has recommended four names for elevation to the Apex Court.
Chief Justice V Ramasubramanian of the Himachal Pradesh High Court, Chief Justice Krishna Murari of the Punjab & Haryana High Court, Chief Justice S Ravindra Bhat of the Rajasthan High Court, and Chief Justice Hrishikesh Roy of the Kerala High Court have been recommended for appointment as Supreme Court judges.
The Collegium resolution passed on August 28 notes that the Supreme Court currently has four vacancies. The recommendation was made after taking into consideration the all-India seniority list of high court judges as well as representation of various high courts at the Supreme Court.
With respect to the appointment of Justice Murari, the resolution states,
“In the seniority of Judges hailing from Allahabad High Court, Mr. Justice Krishna Murari stands at Sl. No.1. While recommending his name, the Collegium is conscious of the fact that on appointment of Mr. Justice Krishna Murari, there will be three Judges on the Bench of the Supreme Court from the Allahabad High Court, which has the distinction of being the largest High Court in the country.”
As regards Justice Bhat, the resolution states,
“While recommending the name of Mr. Justice Bhat, the Collegium is conscious of the fact that in the seniority of Judges hailing from Delhi High Court, he stands at Sl. No.3 and that on his appointment, there will be three Judges on the Bench of the Supreme Court from the Delhi High Court, which has the special status of being the High Court of the national capital.”
The note concerning Justice Ramasubramanian states,
“He stands at Sl. No.42 in the combined seniority of High Court Judges on all-India basis. While recommending the name of Mr. Justice Ramasubramanian, the Collegium is conscious of the fact that in the seniority of Judges hailing from Madras High Court, he stands at Sl. No.2 and that on his appointment, there will be two Judges on the Bench of the Supreme Court from the Madras High Court, which is the fourth largest High Court in the country.”
And finally, the Collegium has noted that with respect to Justice Roy,
“In the seniority of Judges hailing from Gauhati High Court, Mr. Justice Hrishikesh Roy stands at Sl. No.1. While recommending his name, the Collegium is conscious of the fact that on appointment of Mr. Justice Hrishikesh Roy, there will be two Judges on the Bench of the Supreme Court from the Gauhati High Court but that will be for a very short duration as one of them (Chief Justice of India) would be demitting office in November, 2019.”
Justice V Ramasubramanian was appointed as an additional judge of the Madras High Court in July 2006, and as a permanent judge in November 2009. He was transferred to the High Court of Judicature at Hyderabad in 2016, consequent upon his own request. After the bifurcation of the High Court, he was retained as a judge of the Telangana High Court. He was appointed as Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court in June. this year.
Justice Krishna Murari was appointed as an additional judge of the Allahabad High Court in 2004 and as a permanent judge the following year. He took over as Chief Justice of the Punjab & Haryana High Court in June this year.
Justice S Ravindra Bhat was appointed an Additional judge of Delhi High Court in 2004 and was made a permanent judge in 2006. He was appointed as Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court earlier this year.
Justice Hrishikesh Roy was made an additional judge of the Gauhati High Court in 2006 and was made permanent in 2008. He assumed charge as Chief Justice of the Kerala High Court in August last year.
Read the resolution: