Centre has decided to move ahead with the elevation of Justice Vipul Pancholi, despite Justice BV Nagarathna’s strong opposition. Sources said the government will proceed with the appointment, making clear that her dissent will not stall the process.
New Delhi: The Central government is swiftly advancing the appointment warrants for Justices Alok Aradhe and Vipul Pancholi, despite a dissent from a Collegium member regarding the latter’s promotion to the Supreme Court.
Justice BV Nagarathna, a Collegium member, has reportedly expressed that “Justice Pancholi’s appointment would be counter-productive” to the administration of justice and could undermine the credibility of the Collegium system.
In her strongly worded dissent, future Chief Justice Nagarathna highlighted that Justice Pancholi ranks 57th among High Court judges and suggested that more senior judges from various High Courts should be considered prior to him.
However, the other four Collegium members, Chief Justice of India BR Gavai, Justices Surya Kant, Vikram Nath, and JK Maheshwari supported Justice Pancholi’s elevation, effectively rendering the dissent inconsequential.
Sources within the government indicate that the Centre will move forward with Justice Pancholi’s appointment, regardless of Justice Nagarathna’s objections.
A source stated,
“The file with the recommendation of the Supreme Court Collegium has been sent to the Prime Minister’s Office and, once cleared, it will be sent to the Rashtrapati Bhawan for approval of the President. We are hoping that the warrants will be issued before end of this week,”
If confirmed by the Central government, Justice Pancholi will serve as India’s 60th Chief Justice in 2031 and will be the third sitting Supreme Court judge from the Gujarat High Court. He is expected to have a nearly eight-year tenure at the Supreme Court.
Notably, the resolution posted on the Supreme Court’s website did not include Justice Nagarathna’s dissent note.
Concerns have been raised regarding the transparency of the Collegium resolution dated August 25, which recommended Justices Pancholi and Alok Aradhe for elevation to the Supreme Court.
The Campaign for Judicial Accountability and Reforms (CJAR) issued a press release highlighting three key omissions in the August 25 resolution:
- The names of the appointees are provided without details about their backgrounds, contrary to previous practices.
- The collegium coram responsible for the recommendations is not mentioned.
- The criteria for prioritizing candidates lower in seniority are not disclosed.
Earlier, The Supreme Court Collegium has recommended the elevation of Patna High Court Chief Justice Vipul Manubhai Pancholi as a judge of the Supreme Court of India.
Justice Pancholi, currently serving as Chief Justice of Patna High Court, is projected to serve an eight-year tenure at the Supreme Court, one of the longest in recent times.
Notably, he is expected to become the Chief Justice of India (CJI) in October 2031, following the retirement of Justice Joymalya Bagchi. His tenure as CJI is anticipated to last over one and a half years, giving him a crucial role in influencing key legal decisions.
Born on May 28, 1968, Justice Pancholi joined the Bar in September 1991 and began practicing at the Gujarat High Court.
He was elevated as an additional judge on October 1, 2014, confirmed as permanent judge on June 10, 2016, and transferred to the Patna High Court in July 2023, where he served as Chief Justice.
It is further learnt that Justice Nagarathna referred to the circumstances surrounding Justice Pancholi’s transfer from the Gujarat High Court to the Patna High Court.
She reportedly asked the collegium to review the confidential minutes of this transfer to verify whether the process was conducted according to established procedure. Her note also requested that the dissent be uploaded on the Supreme Court’s website.
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