The Supreme Court collegium’s decision to shake-up the higher judiciary, as reported in these columns, including the transfers of chief justices of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, was formally uploaded on its website on Wednesday.
In all, 14 judicial officers were part of the recommended shuffle: promotion of five judges as chief justices; transfer of four chief justices to various high courts; and transfer of five judges.
Apart from the elevation of Justice Dr S Muralidhar as Chief Justice of Orissa High Court and Delhi High Court judge Hima Kohli as Chief Justice of Telangana High Court, the collegium approved proposals to promote Calcutta High Court judge Sanjib Banerjee as Chief Justice of Madras High Court, Allahabad High Court judge Pankaj Mithal as Chief Justice of Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand High Court judge Sudhanshu Dhulia as Gauhati High Court Chief Justice.
The judges whose transfers have been approved include Justice Sanjay Yadav, presently serving as the acting Chief Justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court.
His name has been recommended for transfer to the Allahabad High Court. Justice Rajesh Bindal, who is currently the acting Chief Justice of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court, has been proposed for a transfer to the Calcutta High Court.
The other transfers of judges are Madras High Court judge Vineet Kothari to the Gujarat High Court; Calcutta High Court judge Joymalya Bagchi to the Andhra Pradesh High Court; and Madhya Pradesh High Court judge Satish Chandra Sharma to the Karnataka High Court.