The Union authorities on Tuesday introduced the appointment of justice Manmohan, chief justice of the Delhi excessive courtroom, as a decide of the Supreme Court docket. The appointment was notified after President Droupadi Murmu’s approval following a advice by the Supreme Court docket collegium earlier this month.
Union regulation minister Arjun Ram Meghwal shared the information on X, stating: “In train of the powers conferred by the Structure of India, the President, after session with Chief Justice of India, is happy to nominate Shri Justice Manmohan, Chief Justice, Excessive Court docket of Delhi as a Decide of the Supreme Court docket of India.”
Justice Manmohan’s elevation comes at a time when the Supreme Court docket is working with two vacancies, and his appointment is predicted to boost the illustration of the Delhi excessive courtroom within the nation’s high courtroom.
On November 28, the Supreme Court docket collegium, led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna, advisable justice Manmohan’s elevation. The five-member collegium, additionally comprising justices Bhushan R Gavai, Surya Kant, Hrishikesh Roy and Abhay S Oka, underscores a mix of concerns, together with seniority, advantage, integrity and the necessity to keep ample illustration of the Delhi excessive courtroom within the Supreme Court docket.
The decision emphasised that the apex courtroom had just one decide from the Delhi excessive courtroom — CJI Khanna —following the retirements of justices S Ravindra Bhat, Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Hima Kohli. Traditionally, the Delhi excessive courtroom has contributed three to 4 judges to the Supreme Court docket at any given time, making justice Manmohan’s appointment important to revive this stability.
Justice Manmohan’s journey to the best courtroom is marked by an illustrious authorized profession. Born on December 17, 1962, in Delhi to late Jagmohan, a famous bureaucrat and politician, he accomplished his education at Fashionable Faculty, Barakhamba Street, and graduated with a BA (Hons) in Historical past from Hindu Faculty, College of Delhi. After incomes his regulation diploma from the Campus Regulation Centre, College of Delhi, in 1987, justice Manmohan started practising regulation, specialising in civil, prison, constitutional and arbitration issues.
In 2003, the Delhi excessive courtroom designated him a senior advocate, recognising his experience in high-profile circumstances such because the Dabhol Energy Firm dispute and the Hyderabad Nizam’s Jewelry Belief matter. Appointed as an extra decide of the Delhi excessive courtroom in 2008 and confirmed as a everlasting Decide in 2009, justice Manmohan steadily ascended the judicial ranks.
Following justice Satish Chandra Sharma’s elevation to the Supreme Court docket in November 2023, justice Manmohan served because the performing chief justice earlier than being sworn in because the full-time chief justice of the Delhi excessive courtroom on September 29, 2024.
Justice Manmohan’s tenure on the Delhi excessive courtroom is studded with important rulings. In April 2023, his bench upheld the constitutionality of the Centre’s GST notification on ride-hailing platforms similar to Uber, asserting their obligation underneath the Central Items and Providers Tax Act, 2017. In July 2024, he upheld a regulation mandating a 50% statutory warning on pan masala packages, prioritizing public well being over personal pursuits.
He additionally led important judicial interventions in public administration. In February 2024, his bench ordered a evaluate of Delhi’s state-run hospitals, aiming to optimise medical infrastructure. His April directives to streamline town’s drainage system and tackle encroachments on Yamuna floodplains emphasised environmental safety and concrete administration.
Justice Manmohan has not shied away from critiquing political management. In April 2024, he rebuked the Delhi authorities for failing to provide uniforms and books to municipal college college students, accusing it of prioritising political consolidation over governance. His bench castigated then Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal over delays in implementing welfare insurance policies as a result of his detention within the Delhi excise coverage case. On the similar time, it steered away from the “political thicket” by rejecting a set of petitions urgent for judicial orders to take away the Aam Aadmi Celebration chief. Justice Manmohan was clear that there was no scope for judicial interference in such issues and emphasised that the courtroom mustn’t wade into political disputes. This balanced method mirrored his no-nonsense angle in direction of accountability whereas sustaining judicial propriety.
In one other notable order, justice Manmohan lately compelled Wikipedia to share consumer info and take away defamatory content material associated to a authorized dispute with ANI, marking a precedent in digital accountability.
