Who is Justice Sanjiv Khanna, the new Chief Justice of India?

On Monday, November 11, senior Supreme Court judge Justice Sanjiv Khanna was sworn in as India’s 51st Chief Justice at Rashtrapati Bhavan.At ten in the morning, President Droupadi Murmu gave him the oath of office. He will hold the position of Chief Justice of India for a period of six months.

The outgoing Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, who retired on November 10 after serving since November 9, 2022, nominated Justice Sanjiv Khanna, the Supreme Court’s second-most senior judge, to be Chief Justice.

Sanjiv Khanna, who was born on May 14, 1960, started practicing law in 1983 as an advocate for the Delhi Bar Council. He has a wealth of knowledge in the areas of taxation, arbitration, commercial law, environmental law, and constitutional law.

In addition, Justice Khanna was the Income Tax Department’s Senior Standing Counsel. He was named the National Capital Territory of Delhi’s Standing Counsel (Civil) in 2004.Justice Khanna’s noteworthy judicial career began in 2005 when he was appointed as an additional judge of the Delhi High Court and in 2006 when he was made a permanent judge.

Justice Khanna had a crucial part in forming the legal system during his time there by making important contributions to the Delhi Judicial Academy, Delhi International Arbitration Center, and District Court Mediation Centers.

Justice Khanna was appointed to the Supreme Court on January 18, 2019, despite never having held the position of Chief Justice of a High Court.

Arvind Kejriwal, the former chief minister of Delhi, was granted temporary bail by Justice Khanna, one of his many historic rulings. Kejriwal was able to campaign for the Lok Sabha elections thanks to this judgment. In yet another significant decision, Justice Khanna emphasized that the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) may legitimately issue bail in cases when procedures have been delayed. This ruling was made in a case involving Manish Sisodia, the former deputy chief minister of Delhi.