New Delhi: The Centre has cleared the appointment of Justice Sanjay Kumar Agrawal as the Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court, following the Supreme Court Collegium’s recommendation made against the backdrop of concerns raised by apex court judge Justice Sandeep Mehta over the functioning of Acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma.
In an order issued after consultation with Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant, the President appointed Justice Agrawal, presently a judge of the Chhattisgarh High Court, as the regular Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court.
The appointment comes days after the Supreme Court Collegium, headed by CJI Kant, recommended Justice Agrawal for the post at its meeting on August 31. The recommendation had come against the backdrop of concerns raised by Supreme Court judge Justice Sandeep Mehta regarding the functioning of Acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma.
Justice Mehta, who was elevated to the Supreme Court from the Rajasthan High Court, had written three letters dated August 2, August 10 and August 17 to the CJI and the Supreme Court Collegium, urging the appointment of a regular Chief Justice from another high court to head the Rajasthan High Court. He had also raised allegations against Acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma, including alleged misuse of administrative powers, manipulation of case listings and favouritism towards certain lawyers and parties.
The concerns had come amid the prolonged tenure of Justice Sharma as Acting Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court.
CJI Surya Kant, while taking note of the matter, had stressed that allegations against a sitting judge must be dealt with strictly through established institutional mechanisms and cannot be adjudicated in the public domain. “The fact that allegations have been made, therefore, cannot by itself be treated as a finding against the judge,” the CJI had said, adding that the matter was being examined at the appropriate level after taking into account the material placed by Justice Mehta and the response of Justice Sharma.
The Supreme Court Collegium subsequently recommended Justice Sanjay Kumar’s transfer from the Chhattisgarh High Court to the Rajasthan High Court and his appointment as its Chief Justice. The Centre has now cleared the recommendation, paving the way for Justice Agrawal to head the Rajasthan High Court as its regular Chief Justice.
Besides Justice Agrawal’s appointment, the Centre on Saturday cleared seven other appointments as Chief Justices of various High Courts following recommendations made by the Supreme Court Collegium.
Justice Valluri Kameswar Rao of the Delhi High Court has been appointed as the Chief Justice of the Patna High Court, while Justice Ravindra V. Ghuge of the Bombay High Court has been appointed as the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court.
Justice Mahesh Chandra Tripathi of the Allahabad High Court has been appointed as the Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court. Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra of the Punjab and Haryana High Court has been appointed as the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
The Centre has also appointed Justice Krushna Ram Mohapatra of the Orissa High Court as the Chief Justice of the Chhattisgarh High Court.
Justice Alpesh Yeshvant Kogje of the Gujarat High Court has been appointed as the Chief Justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court. Justice Dr Pushpendra Singh Bhati of the Rajasthan High Court has been appointed as the Chief Justice of the Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court.
–IANS
