Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi has recommended Justice Sharad Arvind Bobde as his successor and the 47th Chief Justice of India in keeping with convention and the seniority norm, sources said.
Chief Justice Gogoi, who is scheduled to retire on November 17, has sent his recommendation in writing to the government.
The written communication from the incumbent Chief Justice, ideally a month before his retirement, is the first step in the appointment process of the next CJI. It will be put up before the PM and forwarded to the President.
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The Memorandum of Procedure for appointment of judges to the Supreme Court prescribes that the “appointment to the office of the Chief Justice of India should be of the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court considered fit to hold the office".
The CJI’s communication would be now put up before the Prime Minister and forwarded to the President for appointment.
Justice Bobde would have a tenure of 18 months. He will retire on April 23, 2021.
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Born in 1956 at Nagpur in Maharashtra, Justice Bobde was appointed as a judge of the Bombay High Court in 2000 and went on to become Chief Justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court. He was elevated to the Supreme Court in 2013.
Justice Bobde is part of the Ayodhya Bench. He was the first to moot the idea of mediation of the prolonged dispute to “heal hearts and minds”. Justice Bobde is also hearing the BCCI dispute.