Justice Surya Kant Becomes 53rd Chief Justice of India

New Delhi, Nov 24 (PTI) Justice Surya Kant, recognized for his involvement in significant legal decisions, including the abrogation of Article 370 concerning Jammu and Kashmir's special status and the revision of Bihar's electoral rolls, was sworn in as the 53rd Chief Justice of India on Monday. He follows Justice B R Gavai in this esteemed position.

President Droupadi Murmu administered the oath to Justice Kant during a succinct ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan. Justice Kant opted to take the oath in Hindi, dedicating it in the name of God. Having been appointed as the next CJI on October 30, he is set to serve a term lasting almost 15 months, concluding on February 9, 2027, upon reaching the age of retirement at 65 years.

Notable figures such as Vice President C P Radhakrishnan and Prime Minister Narendra Modi were present at the swearing-in ceremony. Shortly after taking his oath, Justice Kant approached Prime Minister Modi to exchange greetings. Subsequently, Prime Minister Modi took to X to share images of the ceremony, expressing his well wishes for Justice Kant's forthcoming tenure.

A customary group photograph was taken featuring President Murmu, Vice President Radhakrishnan, Prime Minister Modi, CJI Kant, former CJI Gavai, and Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal. Former Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar also attended, extending his congratulations to the new CJI.

Justice Gavai, who relinquished the CJI office on Sunday, shared an embrace with his successor. Born on February 10, 1962, in Hisar, Haryana, Justice Kant rose from modest beginnings to assume the country's highest judicial office. Distinguished by his 'first class first' ranking in his Master’s in law from Kurukshetra University, Justice Kant has contributed to several high-profile verdicts and constitutional matters of national import.

His judicial career includes notable judgments issued by the Punjab and Haryana High Court, prior to his appointment as the Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court on October 5, 2018. As a Supreme Court judge, he participated in rulings related to Article 370, free speech, and citizenship rights. He was instrumental in the recent presidential reference concerning the powers of Governors and the President over state assembly bills.

Justice Kant was part of the bench that temporarily suspended the colonial-era sedition law, preventing new FIRs from being registered under it pending a government review. He also urged the Election Commission to clarify details about 65 lakh voters excluded from Bihar's draft electoral rolls during hearings on the Special Intensive Revision process in the state.

Addressing grassroots democracy and gender justice, he led a bench that reinstated a wrongfully removed woman sarpanch, highlighting gender bias in the case. Justice Kant is credited with the direction to reserve one-third of seats in bar associations, including the Supreme Court Bar Association, for women.

Justice Kant participated in forming a committee led by former Supreme Court judge Justice Indu Malhotra to investigate the security breach during Prime Minister Modi’s Punjab visit in 2022, underscoring the need for "a judicially trained mind" in such inquiries. He also upheld the constitutional validity of the One Rank-One Pension scheme for the armed forces and continues to address women officers' petitions seeking permanent commission parity.

Part of the notable seven-judge bench, he played a role in overturning the 1967 Aligarh Muslim University judgment, enabling reconsideration of the university's minority status. He was active in the Pegasus spyware case hearings, appointing a panel of cyber experts to investigate surveillance allegations, ardently asserting that the state cannot have a "free pass under the guise of national security."

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