Justice Sanjiv Khanna will be sworn in on November 11, following the retirement of the current Chief Justice, D.Y. Chandrachud.
Justice Sanjiv Khanna was appointed as the 51st Chief Justice of India on Thursday. He will be sworn in on November 11, following the retirement of the current Chief Justice, D.Y. Chandrachud, who will step down after reaching the age of 65.
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Justice Chandrachud assumed the position of CJI on November 8, 2022. Justice Khanna’s tenure as Chief Justice will last a little over six months, and he will retire on May 13, 2025.
“In exercise of the power conferred by the Constitution of India, Hon’ble President, after consultation with Hon’ble Chief Justice of India, is pleased to appoint Shri Justice Sanjiv Khanna, Judge of the Supreme Court of India as Chief Justice of India with effect from 11th November, 2024,” Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal posted on X.
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Who is Justice Sanjiv Khanna?
Justice Sanjiv Khanna was born on May 14, 1960. He began his legal career in 1983 after enrolling as an advocate with the Bar Council of Delhi. Over the years, he practiced in various courts, including the Tis Hazari District Courts and the Delhi High Court, focusing on constitutional law, taxation, arbitration, and more.
During his career, he served as Senior Standing Counsel for the Income Tax Department and as Standing Counsel (Civil) for the National Capital Territory of Delhi in 2004.
In 2005, Justice Khanna was appointed as an additional judge of the Delhi High Court and was made a permanent judge in 2006. He also chaired several legal bodies, including the Delhi Judicial Academy and the Delhi International Arbitration Centre. On January 18, 2019, he was elevated to the Supreme Court of India.
Currently, Justice Khanna serves as the Executive Chairman of the National Legal Services Authority and is a member of the Governing Council of the National Judicial Academy in Bhopal.
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Notable rulings by Justice Sanjiv Khanna
Justice Sanjiv Khanna has delivered several notable rulings. In 2024, he led a Division Bench that dismissed a plea by the Association for Democratic Reforms seeking 100% VVPAT verification of votes, citing the existing safeguards implemented by the Election Commission of India.
In another landmark decision in 2024, Justice Khanna played a key role in the ruling that declared the Electoral Bond Scheme unconstitutional. He argued that the scheme violated the right to information, as donor identities were “asymmetrically known” to bank officers, stressing the need for greater transparency in electoral funding.
In 2023, Justice Khanna was part of the five-judge Bench that upheld the abrogation of Article 370, which revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir. He observed that Article 370 reflected asymmetric federalism, and its removal did not compromise India’s federal structure.
