SHIMLA: The Union government has cleared the recommendation of the Supreme Court Collegium, led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, for the appointment of Justice GS Sandhawalia as the new Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court.
The decision was part of a broader set of recommendations by the Collegium, which were made on September 17 in supersession of its earlier resolution from July 11.
Justice Sandhawalia, who is currently the senior-most puisne judge at the Punjab and Haryana High Court, will take over from Justice Rajiv Shakdher, who is set to retire on October 18. The appointment comes after a prolonged delay, during which the Centre cited “sensitive information” as a reason for the holdup in moving forward with the Collegium’s recommendations for several high courts, including those of Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, Delhi, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Madras and Meghalaya.
A Supreme Court Bench, concerned with the delays, recently questioned the Centre on why t inhe recommendations had not been acted upon. Chief Justice Chandrachud emphasised that the Supreme Court Collegium is not a mere search committee whose decisions can be ignored or stalled. During the hearing, the Bench requested Attorney General R Venkataramani to provide a list of the pending names and the reasons for the delays.
Justice GS Sandhawalia’s appointment is part of a series of high court leadership changes that also saw Justice Tashi Rabstan confirmed as Chief Justice of the Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court, and Justice Suresh Kumar Kait appointed as Chief Justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court. These appointments, now notified by the Centre, mark a crucial step in ensuring the smooth functioning of the judiciary across these states.
Justice Sandhawalia’s tenure in Himachal Pradesh is expected to bring continuity and stability to the state’s judiciary, especially in the wake of Justice Shakdher’s impending retirement.
