The Chief Justice of India is the head of the judiciary in the country and plays a crucial role in upholding the Constitution and ensuring justice for all citizens.
Each CJI brings their own unique perspective and judicial philosophy to the role, shaping the direction of the Indian legal system during their tenure.
With the establishment of the Supreme Court of India on 26 January 1950, 51 judges have served as the Chief Justice of India to date. Justice B R Gavai is the 52nd Chief Justice of India.
The Chief Justice of India is appointed by the President of India and can hold office up to the age of 65 years. Generally, the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court of India is appointed as the Chief Justice of India.
The constitution and jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of India are stated in detail from Article 124 to Article 147 of the Indian Constitution.
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List of all the Chief Justices of India
Here's the list of the Chief Justices of India from 1950 to present. The list includes:
| No. | Name | Date of Appointment | Held Office Till |
| 1 | Hon'ble Justice Harilal Jekisundas Kania | 26/01/1950 | 06/11/1951 |
| 2 | Hon'ble Justice M. Patanjali Sastri | 07/11/1951 | 03/01/1954 |
| 3 | Hon'ble Justice Mehr Chand Mahajan | 04/01/1954 | 22/12/1954 |
| 4 | Hon'ble Justice Bijan Kumar Mukherjea | 23/12/1954 | 31/01/1956 |
| 5 | Hon'ble Justice Sudhi Ranjan Das | 01/02/1956 | 30/09/1959 |
| 6 | Hon'ble Justice Bhuvneshwar Prasad Sinha | 01/10/1959 | 31/01/1964 |
| 7 | Hon'ble Justice P.B. Gajendragadkar | 01/02/1964 | 15/03/1966 |
| 8 | Hon'ble Justice A.K. Sarkar | 16/03/1966 | 29/06/1966 |
| 9 | Hon'ble Justice K. Subba Rao | 30/06/1966 | 11/04/1967 |
| 10 | Hon'ble Justice K.N. Wanchoo | 12/04/1967 | 24/02/1968 |
| 11 | Hon'ble Justice M. Hidayatullah | 25/02/1968 | 16/12/1970 |
| 12 | Hon'ble Justice J.C. Shah | 17/12/1970 | 21/01/1971 |
| 13 | Hon'ble Justice S.M. Sikri | 22/01/1971 | 25/04/1973 |
| 14 | Hon'ble Justice A.N. Ray | 26/04/1973 | 28/01/1977 |
| 15 | Hon'ble Justice M. Hameedullah Beg | 29/01/1977 | 21/02/1978 |
| 16 | Hon'ble Justice Y.V. Chandrachud | 22/02/1978 | 11/07/1985 |
| 17 | Hon'ble Justice P.N. Bhagwati | 12/07/1985 | 20/12/1986 |
| 18 | Hon'ble Justice R.S. Pathak | 21/12/1986 | 18/06/1989 |
| 19 | Hon'ble Justice E.S. Venkataramiah | 19/06/1989 | 17/12/1989 |
| 20 | Hon'ble Justice Sabyasachi Mukherjee | 18/12/1989 | 25/09/1990 |
| 21 | Hon'ble Justice Ranganath Misra | 25/09/1990 | 24/11/1991 |
| 22 | Hon'ble Justice K.N. Singh | 25/11/1991 | 12/12/1991 |
| 23 | Hon'ble Justice M.H. Kania | 13/12/1991 | 17/11/1992 |
| 24 | Hon'ble Justice L.M. Sharma | 18/11/1992 | 11/02/1993 |
| 25 | Hon'ble Justice M.N. Venkatachaliah | 12/02/1993 | 24/10/1994 |
| 26 | Hon'ble Justice A.M. Ahmadi | 25/10/1994 | 24/03/1997 |
| 27 | Hon'ble Justice J.S. Verma | 25/03/1997 | 17/01/1998 |
| 28 | Hon'ble Justice M.M. Punchhi | 18/01/1998 | 09/10/1998 |
| 29 | Hon'ble Dr. Justice A.S. Anand | 10/10/1998 | 31/10/2001 |
| 30 | Hon'ble Justice S.P. Bharucha | 01/11/2001 | 05/05/2002 |
| 31 | Hon'ble Justice B.N. Kirpal | 06/05/2002 | 07/11/2002 |
| 32 | Hon'ble Justice G.B. Pattanaik | 08/11/2002 | 18/12/2002 |
| 33 | Hon'ble Justice V.N. Khare | 19/12/2002 | 01/05/2004 |
| 34 | Hon'ble Justice S. Rajendra Babu | 02/05/2004 | 31/05/2004 |
| 35 | Hon'ble Justice R.C. Lahoti | 01/06/2004 | 31/10/2005 |
| 36 | Hon'ble Justice Y.K. Sabharwal | 01/11/2005 | 13/01/2007 |
| 37 | Hon'ble Justice K.G. Balakrishnan | 14/01/2007 | 12/05/2010 |
| 38 | Hon'ble Justice S.H. Kapadia | 12/05/2010 | 28/09/2012 |
| 39 | Hon'ble Justice Altamas Kabir | 29/09/2012 | 18/07/2013 |
| 40 | Hon'ble Justice P. Sathasivam | 19/07/2013 | 26/04/2014 |
| 41 | Hon'ble Justice R. M. Lodha | 27/04/2014 | 27/09/2014 |
| 42 | Hon'ble Justice H.L. Dattu | 28/09/2014 | 02/12/2015 |
| 43 | Hon'ble Justice T. S. Thakur | 03/12/2015 | 03/01/2017 |
| 44 | Hon'ble Jagdish Singh Khehar | 04/01/2017 | 27/08/2017 |
| 45 | Hon'ble Justice Dipak Misra | 28/08/2017 | 02/10/2018 |
| 46 | Hon'ble Ranjan Gogoi | 03/10/2018 | 17/11/2019 |
| 47 | Hon'ble Sharad Arvind Bobde | 18/11/2019 | 23/04/2021 |
| 48 | Hon'ble Nuthalapati Venkata Ramana | 24/04/2021 | 26/08/2022 |
| 49 | Hon'ble UU Lalit | 27/08/2022 | 08/11/2022 |
| 50 | Hon'ble DY Chandrachud | 09/11/2022 | 10/11/2024 |
| 51 | Hon'ble Justice Sanjiv Khanna | 11/11/24 | 13/05/25 |
| 52 | Hon'ble Justice B R Gavai | 14/05/25 | - |
Source: Supreme Court of India
Also Read| List of 9 Landmark Judgements by CJI Chandrachud! Everything You Need to Know
Who was the First Chief Justice of India?
The first Chief Justice of India was Harilal Jekisundas Kania, who served from January 26, 1950, until his death on November 6, 1951.
He was appointed as the inaugural CJI following the establishment of the Supreme Court of India, which replaced the Federal Court of India. Justice Kania played a crucial role in laying the foundation for the Indian judiciary in the post-independence era.
Justice Kania's tenure was marked by the early challenges of establishing judicial independence and interpreting the newly adopted Constitution of India. His leadership set important precedents for the functioning of the Supreme Court.
Who is the Current Chief Justice of India?
Source: The Mooknayak
The current Chief Justice of India is Justice B.R. Gavai. He was sworn in as the 52nd Chief Justice of India on May 14, 2025. Justice Gavai is the first Buddhist to hold this prestigious position. He succeeded Justice Sanjiv Khanna.
Justice Gavai's tenure as Chief Justice will last until his retirement in November 2025. Before his appointment, Justice Gavai served as a Judge of the Supreme Court, having been elevated to that position in 2019. He has been part of several key judgements.
Latest Updates on Chief Justices
On January 21, 2025, the Chief Justice of Telangana, Justice Alok Aradhe, was sworn in as the 48th Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court. The oath was administered by Governor C. P. Radhakrishnan and took place at Raj Bhavan.
Additionally, on the other hand, Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya was officially sworn in as the new Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court. It was administered by the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi. The event took place in Raj Niwas in Civil Lines, Delhi.
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