Justice Surya Kant Set to Become India's 53rd Chief Justice Following CJI Gavai's Recommendation

Justice Surya Kant with Chief Justice BR Gavai.

New Delhi:

Chief Justice of India Bhushan Ramkrishna Gavai has officially recommended Justice Surya Kant to the Centre as his successor for the position of Chief Justice of India.

Currently serving as the second senior-most Supreme Court judge after CJI Gavai, Justice Surya Kant is poised to become India's 53rd Chief Justice on November 24, following CJI Gavai's retirement on November 23.

According to sources, CJI Gavai, who took office on May 14 this year, has formally submitted Justice Surya Kant's name to the Union law ministry for the prestigious appointment.

Justice Surya Kant, who was elevated to the Supreme Court on May 24, 2019, will have a tenure of approximately 1.2 years as Chief Justice. His retirement is scheduled for February 9, 2027, in accordance with the mandatory retirement age of 65 years for Supreme Court judges.

The memorandum of procedure that governs judicial appointments specifies that the most senior judge of the Supreme Court, deemed fit for office, should be appointed as Chief Justice of India.

Protocol dictates that the Union law minister seeks the outgoing CJI's recommendation for succession at the appropriate time, typically one month before the incumbent's retirement.

Born on February 10, 1962, in Hisar district of Haryana to a middle-class family, Justice Surya Kant brings extensive judicial experience to the nation's highest judicial office. His two-decade tenure on the bench features numerous landmark judgments on critical issues including the abrogation of Article 370, free speech, democratic principles, anti-corruption measures, environmental protection, and gender equality.

Justice Surya Kant participated in the bench that suspended the colonial-era sedition law, ordering that no new FIRs be registered under it pending government review.

Championing electoral transparency, he directed the Election Commission to disclose details of 65 lakh names excluded from draft electoral rolls following Bihar's Special Intensive Revision.

A notable advocate for gender equality, Justice Surya Kant mandated that one-third of seats in bar associations, including the Supreme Court Bar Association, be reserved for women.

He upheld the constitutional validity of the One Rank-One Pension scheme for defense forces and continues to hear petitions from women officers seeking permanent commission parity in the armed forces.

Justice Surya Kant served on the seven-judge bench that overturned the 1967 Aligarh Muslim University judgment, potentially allowing reconsideration of the institution's minority status.

In the Pegasus spyware case, he participated in appointing a panel of cyber experts to investigate allegations of unlawful surveillance, notably stating that the state cannot receive a "free pass under the guise of national security."

Additionally, Justice Surya Kant was part of the bench that appointed a five-member committee led by former Supreme Court Justice Indu Malhotra to investigate the security breach during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 2022 Punjab visit, emphasizing that such matters required "a judicially trained mind."