Today, Monday, November 24, President Droupadi Murmu administered the oath of office to Justice Surya Kant as the 53rd Chief Justice of India (CJI), commencing his 14-month tenure in the country's apex judicial office.
CJI Kant succeeds Justice BR Gavai, who resigned as CJI on Sunday at the age of 65.
Upholding protocol, former CJI Gavai named Justice Kant, the Supreme Court's senior-most judge, as his successor, IANS reports.
Following the recommendation of the outgoing Chief Justice of India, the President appointed Justice Kant as the new CJI "in exercise of the powers conferred by clause (2) of Article 124 of the Constitution".
Looking back on Justice Surya Kant’s life
Justice Surya Kant was born on February 10, 1962, in a middle-class family in Haryana. He began his legal career in Hisar in 1984 before relocating to Chandigarh to stand before the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
He has handled a wide range of constitutional, service, and civil cases throughout the years, representing universities, boards, corporations, banks, and even the High Court.
He was appointed Haryana's youngest Advocate General in July 2000, a senior counsel in 2001, and a permanent judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court on January 9, 2004.
He later served as Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court from October 2018 until his appointment to the Supreme Court on May 24, 2019.
Since November 2024, he has served as Chairman of the Supreme Court Legal Services Committee. He formerly served on the Governing Body of the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) for two terms and is affiliated with a number of judicial and legal service institutions.
Priorities as CJI
In an interaction with the media before taking office, the CJI-designate highlighted that eliminating the backlog of cases in the Supreme Court and other courts across the country would be his top concern. IANS reports.
One of his first tasks, he stated, would be to work with the High Courts to uncover systemic issues impacting district and subordinate courts.
He also said that Constitution Benches of five, seven, and nine judges would be formed "in the next few weeks" to hear key cases that had been pending for some time.
Justice Surya Kant highlighted the importance of strengthening alternative conflict resolution systems, stating, "Mediation will also be implemented effectively to reduce the burden of millions of cases."
