Justice Jagdish Singh Khehar will assume the office of Chief Justice of India (CJI) on Wednesday as the tenure of Justice TS Thakur ends.
President Pranab Mukherjee cleared his appointment in December 19. 64- year-old Khehar, who will be sworn in by the President, will be the 44th Chief Justice of India and will hold the post of seven months.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday once again dismissed a plea challenging the appointment of Justice Khehar as the next CJI, saying, it is in the public interest that the ‘curtain should be brought down’.
The apex court had dismissed two similar pleas filed in the last two weeks. On December 30, the apex court had dismissed a plea filed by a group of lawyers, challenging the elevation of Justice Khehar as the next CJI, saying there was “no question” of him being considered ineligible for the post.
The apex court had on December 23 termed a petition filed by the lawyers’ body as “virtually infructuous” that opposed the elevation of Justice Khehar, and observed that the President has already issued a notification in this regard.
The outgoing chief justice Thakur addressed a gathering of lawyers, sitting and retired judges on Tuesday, his last working day in the top court. He said that in his retirement, he would be a “spectator, observer and contributor to pay back what the institution has given to him”.
Thakur, who had a long battle with the Modi government on the appointment of judges, said: “This country can’t progress unless judiciary prepares itself to handle challenges it would face in cases relating to cyber laws and medico legal cases.”
Source: HindustanTimes