Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi on Friday administered the oath to four new judges of the Supreme Court, PTI reported.
Justices BR Gavai, Surya Kant, Aniruddha Bose and AS Bopanna were sworn-in by Gogoi in the presence of other judges of the Supreme Court. With Gavai’s elevation, the Supreme Court will have a judge belonging to Scheduled Caste category after about a decade.
The Supreme Court will now function at its full strength of 31 judges for the first time since 2008, when Parliament increased the number of judges from 26 to 31.
President Ram Nath Kovind had issued warrants of appointments of the four judges on Wednesday.
Gavai will become the chief justice for a little over six months in 2025, according to PTI. Kant will succeed Gavai as the chief justice in November 2025 and remain in office till February 2027. Bose is ranked 12 in the all-India seniority of high court judges, while Bopanna is ranked 36.
The Supreme Court Collegium had first recommended Bose and Bopanna for elevation on April 12. But the Centre reportedly returned their files, saying their elevation would go against the principle of regional representation. In a resolution passed earlier this month, the collegium reiterated its recommendation to elevate the two judges to the top court, while observing that nothing adverse was found regarding their competence, conduct or integrity.
Bose is currently the chief justice of Jharkhand High Court while Bopanna is the chief justice of Gauhati High Court, Live Law had reported.
On May 8, the Supreme Court collegium recommended Justices BR Gavai and Surya Kant for elevation to the Supreme Court. Gavai is currently serving as a judge in the Bombay High Court and Surya Kant is the chief justice of Himachal Pradesh High Court.
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