Justice Sarangi could have served six months as Jharkhand HC chief justice, now he will two weeks

Delays in the appointment of judges after the recommendation of the collegium cause considerable uncertainty in courts, upsets in seniority and much chagrin among the judges.

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ON Wednesday, the Union government notified the appointment of Orissa High Court judge Justice B.R. Sarangi as chief justice of the Jharkhand High Court.

The appointment has come after a considerable delay. The Supreme Court Collegium consisting of the Chief Justice of India Dr D.Y. Chandrachud and Justices Sanjiv Khanna and B.R. Gavai had recommended his name as far back as December 27, 2023.

During the interlude, much has happened.

Hemant Soren is no longer the chief minister of the state, after being dramatically arrested by the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) on January 31, 2024 in an alleged land scam case, an arrest that was unsuccessfully challenged in the Supreme Court and, of course, the Jharkhand High Court. Soren was finally granted bail last week by the high court.

The high court was yet to dismiss the plea of Indian National Congress member of Parliament (MP) Rahul Gandhi to quash the defamation suit filed against him by Bharatiya Janata Party's Navin Jha for calling the Union home minister Amit Shah 'murder-accused'.

The inordinate delay on the government's part in notifying Justice Sarangi's appointment for reasons not available in the public domain has curtailed his tenure as chief justice. Justice Sarangi will serve as chief justice only for a few days as he is set to retire on July 19 this year.

Also read: Why has the Jharkhand HC granted Hemant Soren bail?

The Jharkhand High Court has not had a regular chief justice since December 28 last year when the then-incumbent Chief Justice Sanjay Kumar Mishra demitted office.

The government has also notified the transfer of the acting chief justice of the Jharkhand High Court Justice Shree Chandrashekhar to the Rajasthan High Court. The transfer request had come from Justice Chandrashekhar himself in December 2023, following Justice Sarangi's appointment as the chief justice of the Jharkhand High Court.

In a meeting held on December 29, 2023, the five-judge collegium comprising CJI Dr Chandrachud and Justices Khanna, Gavai, Surya Kant and Aniruddha Bose had acceded to the request of Justice Chandrashekhar and decided to transfer him to the Rajasthan High Court.

The collegium resolution does not spell out the reason given by Justice Chandrashekhar for his transfer.

Justice Sarangi was appointed as a judge of the Orissa High Court on June 20, 2013, while Justice Chandrashekhar was appointed as a judge of the Jharkhand High Court on January 17, 2013. It can be seen that Justice Chandrashekhar is senior to Justice Sarangi. This could be the reason for Justice Chandrashekhar to seek his transfer.

Last month The Leaflet reported how the government has been sitting over the collegium's recommendations to transfer out four Gujarat High Court judges despite the Supreme Court warning the government of unpalatable consequences.

As part of its pick-and-choose policy, the government has again not notified the appointment of Madhya Pradesh High Court judge Justice Sheel Nagu as chief justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

The Punjab and Haryana High Court is considered one of the biggest high courts in India. It has not had a regular chief justice since October last year.

Also read: Delay in judge transfers: Supreme Court keeps warning of "unpalatable consequences", the government caravan moves on

Many high courts have been functioning without regular chief justices for a considerable time. The Delhi High Court has not had a regular chief justice since November 9, 2023. The Jharkhand High Court has not had a regular chief justice since December 28, 2023.

Similarly, the Madhya Pradesh High Court and the Madras High Court have not had regular chief justices since May 24, 2024. The Punjab and Haryana High Court has been without a regular chief justice since October 13, 2023.

The government has also notified the appointment of the senior-most judge of the Kerala High Court Justice Muhamed Mustaque Ayumantakath as acting Chief Justice of that high court with effect from July 5 upon the retirement of incumbent chief justice A.J. Desai on July 4.

The delay on the part of the government in notifying the appointment of the chief justices is resulting in the curtailment of their tenure not envisaged by the Supreme Court Collegium.

For instance, on April 19, 2023, the Supreme Court Collegium had recommended the appointment of the Bombay High Court's Justice Ramesh D Dhanuka as chief justice of that high court.

The government notified his appointment only on May 26, 2023. He was administered the oath of office on May 28, 2023. He retired on May 30, 2023, after serving in office only for three days.

The case of Justice Jaswant Singh is even more egregious. On September 28, 2022, the Supreme Court Collegium had recommended the appointment of Justice Singh as chief justice of the Orissa High Court. However, the government did not notify the appointment.

On January 25, 2023, the collegium withdrew its recommendation and recommended that Justice Singh be appointed as chief justice of the Tripura High Court.

Also read: SC recommends transfer of three judges, two will rise up the seniority list if transferred

The government notified the recommendation on February 15 and he retired within a week, on February 22, 2023, to be precise. The judge who was recommended to be the chief justice of a high court as far back as September 2022 was made the chief justice in February 2023, that too only a few days before his scheduled retirement.

As noted above, Justice Sarangi, who ought to have served as chief justice for over six months, will now be serving as chief justice only for 14–15 days.

The government tinkering with the collegium's recommendations is not only resulting in the loss of seniority of judges but also bringing humiliation to them when their tenures are virtually curtailed at the behest of the government which has no primary role in the appointment process.