The Supreme Court Collegium, led by Chief Justice of India Sharad A. Bobde, has recommended the name of Calcutta High Court judge Justice Dipankar Datta for appointment as the Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court.
Justice Datta is the brother-in-law of former Supreme Court judge Justice Amitava Roy. Justice (retired) Roy was the puisne judge on the Bench that held former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa and her aide Sasikala Natarajan guilty in a disproportionate assets case. Justice Datta’s father was also a former judge of the Calcutta High Court. Justice Datta was elevated to the Bench of the Calcutta High Court as a permanent judge on June 22, 2006. He is now Judge Two.
The Collegium has also recommended the elevation of Justice Biswanath Somadder, an Allahabad High Court judge, as the Chief Justice of the Meghalaya High Court. The current Chief Justice of the Meghalaya High Court, Justice Mohammad Rafiq, has been recommended for transfer to the Orissa High Court. Justice Rafiq had taken the oath as the Chief Justice of the Meghalaya High Court in November 2019.
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The Collegium took the decisions at a meeting on April 18.