Two more take oath as top court judges
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday regained its full strength of 34 judges as Chief Justice of Gauhati High Court Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia and Gujarat High Court judge Justice Jamshed B Pardiwala took oath as apex court judges here.
Chief Justice of India (CJI) N V Ramana administered the oath of office to justices Dhulia and Pardiwala during a function at the newly-built auditorium of the additional building complex of the apex court.
With the appointment of Justice Dhulia and Justice Pardiwala, the top court regained its full strength of 34 judges, which had come down to 32 after the retirement of Justice R Subhash Reddy on January 4 this year.
Justice Pardiwala will go on to serve as the CJI for over two years, people aware of the procedure to appoint members of the higher judiciary said.
Justice Dhulia, who will be the second judge to be elevated from Uttarakhand, is the sibling of national award-winning film director and actor Tigmanshu Dhulia. He will have a tenure of a little over three years.
After the apex court collegium headed by the CJI recommended the names of the two high court judges, the Union Law Ministry swiftly processed the files on Saturday last which led to the issuance of the warrant of appointment same day from the office of President Ram Nath Kovind.
Justice Pardiwala will be the fourth judge from the Parsi community to adorn the top court bench and the first high court judge from the minority community who has been elevated in the last five years, after Justice S Abdul Nazeer. Justice Nazeer was elevated to the Supreme Court in February 2017.