Justice Sanjiv Khanna Sworn In As 51st Chief Justice Of India

Justice Sanjiv Khanna took over as the 51st Chief Justice of India this morning, succeeding former Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, who retired from the country’s top legal post yesterday. President Droupadi Murmu administered the oath of office to the 64-year-old judge at a ceremony in Rashtrapati Bhavan. Justice Khanna will serve a six-month term as the Chief Justice of India. He is due to retire on May 13 next year.

Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and other ministers attended the ceremony. Former Chief Justice DY Chandrachud was also present.  

Born in Delhi, Chief Justice Khanna went to Modern School Barakhamba Road before moving to St Stephen’s College. He studied law at Delhi University’s Campus Law College.

Chief Justice Khanna’s father, Justice Dev Raj Khanna, was a judge in the Delhi High Court and his mother Saroj Khanna a lecturer at Lady Shri Ram College. His uncle, Justice Hans Raj Khanna, was a Supreme Court judge remembered for his minority judgment in the Emergency era. Justice Hans Raj Khanna was the sole dissenting judge in the landmark judgment that said a person’s right to not be unlawfully detained can be suspended in the interest of the State.

Chief Justice Khanna has earlier worked as a lawyer before joining the Delhi High Court as a judge in 2005. He moved to Supreme Court in 2019.

Chief Justice Khanna has been part of several landmark judgments, including upholding the sanctity of Electronic Voting Machines and the revocation of Article 370 that gave Jammu and Kashmir special status. He was also part of the bench that declared the electoral bonds scheme unconstitutional.