Justice Uday Umesh Lalit appointed 49th Chief Justice of India
Justice Uday Umesh Lalit has been appointed as the 49th Chief Justice of India (CJI). President Droupadi Murmu on Wednesday signed his warrant of appointment. He will take charge on August 27 after the incumbent CJI NV Ramana's tenure ends. Notably, Justice Lalit's term will be less than three months long as he retires on November 8 at the age of 65 years.
What did the Law Ministry notification say?
"In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (2) of Article 124 of the Constitution of India, the President is pleased to appoint Shri Justice Uday Umesh Lalit, judge of the Supreme Court, to be the Chief Justice of India with effect from August 27, 2022," said a Law and Justice Ministry notification. Last week, CJI NV Ramana recommended Lalit's name as his successor.
Ramana recommended his name last week
To recall, Ramana "personally handed over a copy of his letter of recommendation dated 03.08.2022" to Justice Lalit last week, said reports. The recommendation had come a day after the CJI's Secretariat received a correspondence from the Union Minister of Law and Justice Kiren Rijiju requesting he suggest the name of his successor as per the tradition.
His term will be less than three months
The incumbent CJI, according to tradition, suggests the name of their successor only after receiving an official notice from the Law and Justice Ministry asking them to do so. CJI Ramana will retire on August 26, after which Justice Lalit would assume charge as the 49th CJI. He will, however, have a limited tenure and will only be in office only until November 8.
A little about Justice Lalit?
Justice Lalit will be the second Chief Justice of the Supreme Court—after Justice SM Sikri—chosen directly from the Bar, reported The Indian Express. Born in 1957, he enrolled as an advocate in 1983 and practiced at the Bombay HC until 1985. Prior to his appointment as an SC judge in 2014, he served as the Special Public Prosecutor for the Central Bureau of Investigation.
Important cases where his name was highlighted
In 2019, Justice Lalit recused himself from the Ayodhya Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute case, citing his representation of former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Kalyan Singh in a contempt case related to the demolition of the Babri Masjid. Justice Lalit has just launched a case on his own to streamline the procedure of considering mitigating circumstances in death penalty cases.
