Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud has written to the Law Ministry, naming Justice Sanjiv Khanna, the second-most senior judge of the Supreme Court, as his successor. This nomination follows the customary practice whereby the retiring Chief Justice recommends a senior judge for the top position, pending approval from the Union government.
CJI Chandrachud will retire on November 10. As per the convention, the central government wrote to him last week requesting that he name his successor. After the central government’s approval, Justice Khanna will become the 51st Chief Justice of India. Justice Khanna will have a tenure of six months in office and will retire on May 13, 2025.
Justice Sanjiv Khanna began his legal career after enrolling as an advocate with the Bar Council of Delhi in 1983. He initially practised in the district courts at the Tis Hazari complex before moving on to the Delhi High Court and various tribunals. His experience includes serving as Senior Standing Counsel for the Income Tax Department and Standing Counsel for the National Capital Territory of Delhi from 2004.
Justice Sanjiv Khanna is presently the Executive Chairman of the National Legal Services Authority and a member of the Governing Council of the National Judicial Academy, Bhopal.
Over the years, Justice Khanna has held several prestigious positions, including Chairman of the Delhi Judicial Academy and the Delhi International Arbitration Centre. He was appointed as an Additional Judge of the Delhi High Court in 2005 and became a permanent judge the following year. In January 2019, he was elevated to the Supreme Court.
Justice Khanna has been a part of several important rulings. He was part of a bench, which gave a go-ahead to the Central Vista Project. A bench led by him gave interim bail to former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in an Enforcement Directorate case in connection with the Delhi excise policy case.
Justice Khanna has also been part of the constitution bench, which upheld the abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution. He was also part of the bench which struck down the 2018 electoral bonds scheme.
