NEW DELHI, Oct 11: Justice DY Chandrachud will be the next Chief Justice of India. The incumbent CJI UU Lalit on Tuesday recommended to the central government Justice Chandrachud as his successor after a brief meeting held at the Supreme Court judges’ lounge in the presence of all the other judges of the court.
Chief Justice Lalit’s recommendation to the government would start the process for appointment of Justice Chandrachud as the 50th CJI. If the government approval comes through, Justice Chandrachud would be the first second-generation CJI after his father Justice Y.V. Chandrachud having occupied the office as the 16th Chief Justice of India and was one of the longest serving ones.
Justice Lalit is scheduled to retire on November 8 after serving as the CJI only for 74 days and Justice Chandrachud is expected to be sworn in and assume charge as Chief Justice of India from November 9. He has a tenure of about two years as Chief Justice until his retirement on November 11, 2024.
Justice Chandrachud was appointed judge of the Supreme Court on May 13, 2016. He was before that the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court from October 31, 2013. Justice Chandrachud began his judicial career as a judge of the Bombay High Court on March 29, 2000 until his appointment as Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court.
He is an Economics (Honours) graduate from St. Stephen’s College in New Delhi and read Law at the Campus Law University, Delhi University. Justice Chandrachud obtained his LLM degree and a Doctorate in Juridical Sciences (SJD) from Harvard Law School, USA.
Justice Chandrachud’s years in the Supreme Court has seen his hand in almost every notable judgment of the court. His erudite verdicts and dissents on the Bench were marked by a reformist approach, especially in the arena of civil liberties, individual and women’s rights.
(Manas Dasgupta)
