Centre notifies appointment of Justice Sanjiv Khanna as 51st CJI

The Centre on Thursday notified the appointment of Justice Sanjiv Khanna as the next Chief Justice of India.

"In exercise of the power conferred by the Constitution of India, Hon'ble President, is pleased to appoint Justice Sanjiv Khanna, Judge of the Supreme Court of India, as Chief Justice of India with effect from 11th November, 2024," a Department of Justice notification read.

The notification came eight days after Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud recommended to the Central Government the name of Justice Khanna -- the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court -- for appointment as his successor.

CJI Chandrachud is set to retire on November 10 after a two-year stint as the CJI. Justice Khanna will be administered the oath of office by the President on November 11.

Justice Khanna has been a part of many Constitution Bench verdicts, including the ones upholding the abrogation of Article 370 and the scrapping of electoral bonds scheme. He headed the Bench which upheld the use of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) in elections amid the 2019 Lok Sabha poll.

Appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court of India on January 18, 2019, Justice Khanna will have a six-month tenure as the CJI. He will retire on May 13, 2025.

There has been a convention of the CJI recommending the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court as his successor. Only twice, it was not followed – Justice AN Ray was appointed the CJI on April 25, 1973, superseding three senior-most judges and Justice MH Beg was appointed the CJI on January 29, 1977 superseding Justice HR Khanna.

Born on 14th May, 1960, Justice Khanna got enrolled as an advocate with the Bar Council of Delhi in 1983 and initially practised in the District Courts at the Tis Hazari complex, Delhi, and later in the High Court of Delhi and tribunals in fields as diverse as constitutional law, direct taxation, arbitration, commercial law, company law, land law, environmental law and medical negligence.

He was appointed as an additional judge of the Delhi High Court in 2005 and was made a permanent judge in 2006. As a judge of the Delhi High Court, he held the position of Chairman/Judge-in-charge, Delhi Judicial Academy, Delhi International Arbitration Centre and the District Court Mediation Centres. He was elevated as a Judge of the Supreme Court on January 18, 2019. He is known to be an expert in taxation matters.

He also held the post of Chairman, Supreme Court Legal Service Committee, from 17th June 2023 till 25th December 2023.He is presently the Executive Chairman of National Legal Services Authority and a member of the Governing Council of the National Judicial Academy, Bhopal.