The Central Government on Wednesday cleared the appointment of three advocates and one judicial officer as additional judges of the Kerala High Court.
The newly appointed judges are:
TR Ravi
Bechu Kurian Thomas
Gopinath P
MR Anitha
Their appointment has been made pursuant to a Supreme Court Collegium recommendation made in January this year.
In exercise of the power conferred by clause (1) of Article 224 of the Constitution of India, the President is pleased to appoint S/Shri (i) Thirumuppath Raghavan Ravi, (ii) Bechu Kurian Thomas, (iii) Gopinath Puzhankara and (iv) Smt. Mudalikulam Raman Anitha, to be Additional Judges of the Kerala High Court, in that order of seniority, for a period of two years with effect from the date they assume charge of their respective offices.Central Government Notification
Bechu Kurian Thomas is one of the youngest Senior Advocates at the Kerala High Court. Having joined the Bar in 1992, Kurian’s father, former Supreme Court judge, Justice KT Thomas (then a Kerala High Court judge) advised him against practicing in the High Court since he was a sitting judge of the High Court.
He, therefore, started his practice in lower courts in Kottayam before shifting base to Kerala High Court when his father was elevated to the Supreme Court.
Gopinath P obtained his LL.B degree in 1996, holding the 1st Rank. He went on to complete his LL.M from Cambridge in 1999 on a fully funded Cambridge Commonwealth Trust Scholarship. He was also the Incoming Pegasus Scholar of the Inner Temple (1999). In December 2018, he was designated as a Senior Advocate.
With the addition of four more judges, the Kerala High Court now has 27 permanent judges and 9 additional judges. The working strength of the High Court stands at 32 judges as against the sanctioned strength of 47 judges (35 permanent and 12 additional judges).
[Read the Notification]