Justice Krishnan Vinod Chandran sworn in as Supreme Court judge

Justice Chandran was formerly the Chief Justice of Patna High Court

Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna administered the oath of office to Supreme Court’s new judge Justice Krishnan Vinod Chandran, on Thursday (January 16, 2025.)

Justice Chandran was formerly the Chief Justice of Patna High Court. His appointment has raised the judicial strength of the Supreme Court to 33, one short of the full sanctioned strength.

The Supreme Court Collegium had recommended Justice Chandran to the Union Government for appointment as an apex court judge on January 7, 2025. In its resolution, the Collegium headed by Chief Justice Khanna had noted that there was currently no judge from the High Court of Kerala on the Bench of the Supreme Court. At the time of his recommendation in January 2025, Justice Chandran was the senior most among High Court judges hailing from Kerala. He had stood 13 in the combined all-India seniority of High Court Judges.

Justice Chandran was appointed as a judge of the Kerala High Court in November 2011 and elevated as the Patna High Court Chief Justice on March 24, 2023. However, Justice Chandran had also been earlier recommended for appointment as the Chief Justice of the Gauhati High Court on December 13, 2022.

The Supreme Court Collegium had however recalled its recommendation nearly two months later, on February 7 2023, and passed a second resolution for his appointment as the Chief Justice of the Patna High Court.

The Collegium headed by then Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud, in its February 2023 resolution, had explained the change of mind by reasoning that since the date of the earlier December 2022 recommendation, “the position of Chief Justices in number of other High Courts has fallen vacant, consequent of retirement and elevation of the incumbent Chief Justices as judges of the Supreme Court”.

The Chief Justiceship of the Patna High Court had at the time fallen vacant consequent to the elevation of Justice Sanjay Karol to the Supreme Court.

The Collegium, also comprising Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and K.M. Joseph, in its February 2023 resolution, had found Justice Chandran, the senior-most judge of the Kerala High Court with wide experience, fit and suitable for the Chief Justiceship of the Patna High Court.

Justice Chandran is the second Supreme Court judge successfully recommended by the Khanna Collegium after Justice Manmohan in December 2024. His tenure in the apex court would last till April 24, 2028.

With pendency nearing 83,000, the Supreme Court Collegium has repeatedly emphasised on the need to have its full sanctioned strength of judges.

A November 2023 Collegium resolution had pointed out that the apex court cannot afford even one judicial vacancy taking into account the “ever-mounting pendency of cases”.

“The workload of judges has increased considerably. Bearing in mind the above, it has become necessary to ensure that the court has full working judge-strength leaving no vacancy at any point of time,” the Collegium had underscored.

The same sense of urgency was conveyed in a January 2024 resolution of the Collegium, which said that the “workload of judges has increased considerably and it has become necessary to ensure that the court has full working judge-strength at all times”.

Published - January 16, 2025 12:17 pm IST