Appointment of Judges

National Judicial Appointments Commission Act Notified

The Government today notified the National Judicial Appointments Commission Act, 2014 and the Constitution (Ninety-ninth Amendment) Act, 2014 for bringing in a change in the existing system for appointment of Judges in Supreme Court and High Courts.


Two Bills titled 'The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty First Amendment) Bill, 2014' and 'The National Judicial Appointments Commission Bill, 2014' were passed unanimously by the Lok Sabha on 13.08.2014 and Rajya Sabha on 14.08.2014 respectively. Subsequently these Bills were ratified by the required number of State legislatures before getting the President’s assent. The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty First Amendment) Bill, 2014 enacted as the Constitution (Ninety Ninth Amendment) Act and the National Judicial Appointments Commission Act, 2014 were published in Gazette of India on 31st December 2014.

Both the Acts were to come into force on such date as the Central Government would notify them in the Official Gazette.

Accordingly, in exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (2) of section 1 of the Constitution (Ninety-ninth Amendment) Act, 2014, the Central Government appoints the 13th day of April, 2015, as the date on which the said Act shall come into force.

Further, in exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (2) of section 1 of the National Judicial Appointments Commission Act, 2014 (40 of 2014), the Central Government appoints the 13th day of April, 2015, as the date on which the provisions of the said Act shall come into force.

The Constitution (Ninety Ninth Amendment) Act, 2014 provides for the composition and the functions of the proposed NJAC.

The Acts provide for a transparent and broad-based process of selection of Judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts by the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC). The NJAC would be chaired by the Chief Justice of India as in the earlier collegium system. The NJAC membership would include two senior most Judges of the Supreme Court, the Union Minister of Law and Justice, two eminent persons to be nominated by a committee of the Prime Minister of India, the Chief Justice of India, and the Leader of the Opposition in the House of the People, or if there is no Leader of the Opposition, then the Leader of the single largest Opposition Party in the House of the People. With a view to ensuring that the composition of the National Judicial Appointments Commission is inclusive, the Act provides that one of the eminent persons shall be nominated from amongst persons belonging to the Scheduled Caste, the Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, Minorities or Women. The NJAC will frame its own regulations.


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Appointment of Additional Judges in Kerala High Court

In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (1) of article 224 of the Constitution of India, the President is pleased to appoint (1) Shri Shaji Paul Chaly , (2) Smt. Anu Sivaraman, (3) Shri Raja Vijayaraghavan Valsala, (4) Shri Bhaskaran Pillai Sudheendra Kumar (5) Shri Keloth Puthenpura Jyothindranath and (6) Smt. Mary Joseph, 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.

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Appointment of Additional Judges in Allahabad High Court

In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (1) of article 217 of the Constitution of India, the President is pleased to appoint (1) Shri Justice Karuna Nand Bajpayee, (2) Shri Justice Manoj Kumar Gupta, (3) Shri Justice Anjani Kumar Mishra, (4) Shri Justice Mahesh Chandra Tripathi, and (5) Shri Justice Suneet Kumar , Additional Judges of the Allahabad High Court, to be Judges of the Allahabad High court, with effect from the date they assume charge of their respective officers.

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Shri Sunil Thomas to be an Additional Judge of Kerala High Court

In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (1) of article 224 of the Constitution of India, the President is pleased to appoint Shri Sunil Thomas to be an Additional Judge of the Kerala High Court, for a period of two years with effect from the date he assumes charge of his office.

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Shri Ramendra Jain to be an Additional Judge of Punjab & Haryana High Court

In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (1) of article 224 of the Constitution of India, the President is pleased to appoint Shri Ramendra Jain, to be an Additional Judge of the Punjab & Haryana High Court, for a period of two years with effect from the date he assumes charge of his office.

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Shri Ratnaker Bhengra to be an Additional Judge of Jharkhand High Court

In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (1) of article 224 of the Constitution of India, the President is pleased to appoint Shri Ratnaker Bhengra, to be an Additional Judge of the Jharkhand High Court, for a period of two years with effect from the date he assumes charge of his office.

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Appointment of Additional Judges in Orissa High Court

In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (1) of article 224 of the Constitution of India, the President is pleased to appoint (i) Shri Krushna Ram Mohapatra, (ii) Shri Jatindra Prasad Das, and (iii) Dr. Durga Prasanna Choudhury, to be Additional Judges of the Orissa 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.

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Appointment of Additional Judges in Patna High Court

In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (1) of article 224 of the Constitution of India, the President is pleased to appoint (1) Smt. Nilu Agrawal and (2) Shri Sudhir Singh to be Additional Judges of the Patna 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.

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Appointment of Judges in Madras High Court

In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (1) of article 217 of the Constitution of India, the President is pleased to appoint (1) Shri Justice Pazhayanur Narayanan Prakash, (2) Smt. Justice Pushpa Sathyanarayana , (3) Shri Justice Kandasamy Kalyanasundaram, (4) Shri Justice S. Vaidyanathan, (5) Shri Justice R. Mahadevan, (6) Shri Justice V.S. Ravi, (7) Shri Justice Gopalakrishnan Chockalingam, and (8) Miss Justice V.M. Velumani, Additional Judges of the Madras High Court to be Judges of the Madras High Court with effect from the date they assume charge of their offices.

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Shri Justice Dhirendra Hiralal Waghela transfered from Karnataka High Court to Orissa High Court

In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (1) of article 222 of the Constitution of India, the President, after consultation with the Chief Justice of India, is pleased to transfer Shri Justice Dhirendra Hiralal Waghela, Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court, as the Chief Justice of the Orissa High Court and to direct him to assume charge of the office of the Chief Justice of the Orissa High Court within two months from the date of this notification.

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Shri Justice Rajiv Sharma Transfered from Allahabad High Court to Calcutta High Court

In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (1) of article 222 of the Constitution of India, the President, after consultation with the Chief Justice of India, is pleased to transfer Shri Justice Rajiv Sharma, Judge of the Allahabad High Court, as a Judge of the Calcutta High Court and to direct him to assume charge of his office in the Calcutta High Court on or before 27th April, 2015.

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