Justice Surya Kant was sworn in as the 53rd Chief Justice of India at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Monday, with President Droupadi Murmu administering the oath of office. The new Chief Justice took his oath in Hindi, marking the beginning of his tenure that will run until February 9, 2027.
Justice Surya Kant, who was appointed to the Supreme Court on May 24, 2019, succeeds Justice B.R. Gavai. After the ceremony, Justice Gavai vacated the official vehicle designated for the Chief Justice of India and returned in an alternative car, ensuring that the official vehicle remained available for Chief Justice Surya Kant to proceed to the Supreme Court.
Justice Kant had recently stated that one of the foremost challenges during his tenure would be bringing down the Supreme Court’s pending caseload of nearly 90,000 to what he described as a manageable level. His remarks on November 22 underscored the court’s continuing struggle with backlog and the need for institutional efficiency.
Born on February 10, 1962 in Haryana’s Hisar district, Justice Kant rose from a modest background to occupy the country’s highest judicial office. He completed his Master’s degree in law from Kurukshetra University in 2011, securing first class first position. His judicial career has spanned landmark rulings in constitutional, civil and criminal matters.
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Justice Kant’s elevation as Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court in October 2018 had drawn controversy following a letter of objection from Justice A.K. Goel to then Chief Justice Dipak Misra. However, the Collegium upheld his elevation, and he went on to head the High Court before being appointed to the Supreme Court.
As a Supreme Court Judge, Justice Kant was part of several significant verdicts related to the abrogation of Article 370, free speech, citizenship rights and women’s representation in bar associations. He was also on the Bench that kept the colonial-era sedition law in abeyance, barring registration of new FIRs until a government review.
Among other key interventions, he directed the Election Commission of India to disclose details of voters excluded from the Bihar rolls during the Special Intensive Revision, and was part of the Bench that ordered a probe into the 2022 security breach involving Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Punjab.
Justice Surya Kant also upheld the One Rank-One Pension scheme for defence forces and continues to hear matters concerning permanent commission for women officers. He was part of the seven-Judge Bench that overruled the 1967 Aligarh Muslim University judgment, enabling reconsideration of the institution’s minority status. He also heard the Pegasus spyware case, underscoring that the State cannot claim a free pass on national security grounds in matters of alleged unlawful surveillance. [KNT]
