EXPLAINED: The Appointment Process Of Chief Justice Of India

Recently, a new Chief Justice of India took the oath. Yes, we are talking about Justice Uday Umesh Lalit, who became the 49th Chief Justice of India on August 27, 2022. His predecessor was CJI NV Ramana.

According to the protocol, the name was recommended by the predecessor Ramana himself, to the Ministry of Law and Justice on August 4.

The collegium system is the system that appoints judges to the higher judiciary. The appointment is formally made by the President. The executive holds the power to appoint the CJI under Article 124.

Let’s take a look at the procedure to appoint the Chief Justice of India.

The Successor’s Recommendation

As per the protocol, the Supreme Court’s senior-most judge is designated as the CJI. As is the protocol, the formal recommendation of the new Chief Justice of India is sought from the incumbent CJI, usually around a month ahead of the incumbent CJI’s retirement date.

Who Is A Senior Judge?

A judge in the Supreme Court is considered to be senior not by their age but by their years of experience serving as a judge. In a situation where two judges are sworn in as judges in the Supreme Court on the exact same days, the judge who took the oath first is considered to be more senior to the other.

The collegium is formed based on the seniority of judges. The collegium then decides the succession for the Chief Justice of India position.

The incumbent CJI recommends the senior-most judge of the apex court officially to the Ministry of Law and Justice. The Ministry then forwards the communication to the Prime Minister, according to the existing Memorandum of Procedure.

Then, the Prime Minister advises the President on the recommendation. The executive head then, under the powers of Article 124(2) to make appointments of judges to the country’s top courts, makes the appointment.

What Is The Role Of The Collegium?

The incumbent CJI and the four senior-most judges of the Supreme Court comprise the Supreme Court Collegium. This body is responsible for the process of filling up vacancies in the higher courts. The second senior-most judge after the incumbent CJI then becomes the Chief Justice of India.

This protocol of seniority witnessed an exception during the tenure of Indira Gandhi as the Prime Minister of India.

The newly appointed CJI, Justice Uday Umesh Lalit will serve a tenure of less than three months. After his tenure, Justice DY Chandrachud will take over.