Eight High Court judges appointed as Chief Justices
President Droupadi Murmu on Saturday appointed eight judges of various High Courts as Chief Justices of different High Courts. Law and Justice Minister Arjunram Meghwal said on X that the appointments were made under powers conferred by the Constitution and in consultation with the Chief Justice of India. Justice Sanjay Kumar Agarwal of the Chhattisgarh High Court becomes Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court, Justice Valluri Kameswar Rao of Delhi goes to the Patna High Court, and Justice Ravindra V. Ghuge of Bombay to the Calcutta High Court.
Source
Supreme Court / CJI · read the original report ↗
Desk check · compared with the source
What the desk checked (5)
- President Droupadi Murmu appointed eight High Court judges as Chief Justices on September 5, 2026. — Attributed in source to appointments notified on Saturday and announced by Law Minister Arjunram Meghwal on X; eight named appointments are listed, consistent with the figure.
- Appointments were made under constitutional powers in consultation with the Chief Justice of India. — Attributed to Law and Justice Minister Arjunram Meghwal's social media announcement.
- Justice Sanjay Kumar Agarwal of Chhattisgarh HC becomes Chief Justice of Rajasthan HC amid a controversy involving Acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma. — Figure and names appear in source; controversy linkage is the source's characterisation, not an official statement.
- Supreme Court judge Justice Sandeep Mehta wrote to CJI Surya Kant raising concerns about Justice Sharma's conduct, triggering lawyer protests in Rajasthan. — Stated in source without documentary attribution; no letter text or official confirmation cited.
- Justice Sharma denied the charges as baseless and said he submitted his response to the CJI. — Attributed to Justice Sharma; denial recorded in source and must be carried alongside the allegations.
Analysts’ view opinion
On paper this is a routine administrative exercise, but the simultaneous appointment of eight High Court Chief Justices lands at a politically sensitive moment given the recent controversy at the Rajasthan High Court. The absence of the usual visible friction between collegium recommendations and government clearance suggests the working relationship between the judiciary and the executive is, for now, running smoothly. That the Law Minister himself announced it on X, expressly invoking constitutional authority and consultation with the CJI, reads as pre-emptive insulation against criticism.
- Because a new Chief Justice for Rajasthan arrives amid allegations against the Acting Chief Justice and lawyer protests, the move will inevitably be read by some as a way of defusing that row.
- Justice Sharma has denied the allegations and says he has responded to the CJI, so treating this appointment as a verdict on anyone would go beyond what the story establishes.
- Changing the leadership of eight High Courts at once is a substantial shift in state-level judicial administration.
- The explicit framing — constitutional power, in consultation with the CJI — looks designed to answer the standard charge of executive interference before it is made.
- The appointment to the Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court will draw extra attention simply because of the region's political sensitivity.
What to watch — Watch whether the lawyers' agitation in Rajasthan subsides and what, if anything, follows at the CJI's level on Justice Sharma — that will determine the political weight of these appointments.
The story does not establish that the Rajasthan controversy caused these appointments, nor that any allegation has merit, and it gives no dates or reasoning behind the collegium's recommendations.
Deep dive
Research brief · 8 facts · 3 dates · exam-readyThe brief
Context
On September 5, 2026, President Droupadi Murmu appointed eight sitting High Court judges as Chief Justices of various High Courts. Union Law and Justice Minister Arjunram Meghwal announced the appointments on X, saying they were made by the President under powers conferred by the Constitution and in consultation with the Chief Justice of India. One of the appointments — Justice Sanjay Kumar Agarwal to the Rajasthan High Court — comes amid a controversy over the conduct of Rajasthan's Acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma, raised in a letter by Supreme Court judge Justice Sandeep Mehta to CJI Surya Kant.
Key facts
- President Droupadi Murmu on September 5, 2026 appointed eight High Court judges as Chief Justices of different High Courts.
- Law and Justice Minister Arjunram Meghwal announced the appointments on X, citing powers conferred by the Constitution and consultation with the CJI.
- Justice Sanjay Kumar Agarwal (Chhattisgarh HC) appointed Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court.
- Justice Valluri Kameswar Rao (Delhi HC) appointed Chief Justice of the Patna High Court; Justice Ravindra V. Ghuge (Bombay HC) to head the Calcutta High Court.
- Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra of the Punjab and Haryana High Court appointed Chief Justice of the same court.
- Justice Krushna Ram Mohapatra (Orissa HC) to Chhattisgarh HC; Justice Alpesh Yeshwant Kogje (Gujarat HC) to Madhya Pradesh HC.
- Justice Mahesh Chandra Tripathi (Allahabad HC) appointed Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court.
- Justice Pushpendra Singh Bhati (Rajasthan HC) appointed Chief Justice of the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
Timeline
- Before the appointments (date not stated in the source)Supreme Court judge Justice Sandeep Mehta wrote to CJI Surya Kant raising concerns about the conduct of Rajasthan Acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma; lawyers in Rajasthan protested and Justice Sharma denied the charges as baseless, saying he had responded to the CJI.
- September 5, 2026 (Saturday)President Droupadi Murmu appointed eight High Court judges as Chief Justices; appointments notified and announced by Law Minister Arjunram Meghwal on X.
- September 6, 2026, 12:29 am ISTReport published.
Who has a stake
- President Droupadi Murmu — Makes the appointments of High Court Chief Justices in exercise of constitutional powers.
- Chief Justice of India Surya Kant — Consulted on the appointments; also the recipient of Justice Sandeep Mehta's letter on the Rajasthan controversy.
- Union Ministry of Law and Justice (Minister Arjunram Meghwal) — Processes and notifies judicial appointments and announced them publicly.
- Eight elevated judges — Take charge as Chief Justices of Rajasthan, Patna, Calcutta, Punjab and Haryana, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Bombay and J&K and Ladakh High Courts.
- Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma, Acting Chief Justice, Rajasthan HC — Faces allegations about his conduct, which he denies; a regular Chief Justice has now been appointed to the court.
- Rajasthan Bar / lawyers — Protested over the allegations; affected by leadership and functioning of the High Court.
Why it matters
Chief Justices set the administrative tone of a High Court — roster allocation, case listing and collegium recommendations — so eight simultaneous appointments reshape leadership across a large part of the higher judiciary. The batch also fills the Rajasthan High Court's top post amid a public controversy over its Acting Chief Justice, testing the judiciary's internal accountability mechanisms.
UPSC angle
Prelims pointers
- High Court Chief Justices are appointed by the President in consultation with the Chief Justice of India (Article 217 of the Constitution).
- Eight appointments notified on September 5, 2026; announced by Law and Justice Minister Arjunram Meghwal.
- Justice Sanjay Kumar Agarwal (from Chhattisgarh HC) becomes Chief Justice of Rajasthan HC.
- Justice Mahesh Chandra Tripathi (Allahabad HC) becomes Chief Justice of Bombay HC; Justice Ravindra V. Ghuge (Bombay HC) goes to Calcutta HC.
- The High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh is a common High Court for the two Union Territories; Justice Pushpendra Singh Bhati appointed its Chief Justice.
- Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra elevated as Chief Justice within his own court, the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
Mains framing
The simultaneous appointment of eight High Court Chief Justices highlights how leadership of India's High Courts is managed through a consultative process in which the President acts on the advice of the executive in consultation with the Chief Justice of India, with transfers across States a routine feature — as seen in judges moving from Chhattisgarh to Rajasthan, Delhi to Patna, Bombay to Calcutta, Allahabad to Bombay, Orissa to Chhattisgarh, Gujarat to Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan to J&K and Ladakh. Two structural issues emerge. First, prolonged reliance on Acting Chief Justices weakens administrative continuity in courts already burdened with pendency, making timely regular appointments essential. Second, the Rajasthan episode — a Supreme Court judge writing to the CJI about an Acting Chief Justice's conduct, followed by Bar protests and the judge's denial — shows that the judiciary's in-house mechanisms for handling complaints against senior judges remain largely informal and opaque, risking damage to public confidence. The way forward suggested by the episode lies in filling Chief Justice vacancies promptly, ensuring transparency and reasoned communication in the appointment and consultation process, and strengthening credible, time-bound internal procedures for examining allegations against judges so that institutional integrity is protected without undermining judicial independence.
Key terms
- Chief Justice of a High Court
- The head of a High Court, responsible for its administration, appointed by the President in consultation with the CJI.
- Acting Chief Justice
- A senior judge who temporarily discharges the duties of Chief Justice when the post is vacant, as Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma was in Rajasthan.
- Consultation with the CJI
- The constitutional requirement that the President consult the Chief Justice of India before appointing High Court judges and Chief Justices.
- Ministry of Law and Justice
- Union ministry, headed by Arjunram Meghwal, that processes and notifies judicial appointments.
- High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh
- The common High Court serving the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
Practice questions
- Discuss the constitutional process for appointing High Court Chief Justices in India and examine the implications of prolonged vacancies filled by Acting Chief Justices.
- Allegations against sitting judges test the judiciary's internal accountability. In light of the Rajasthan High Court controversy, evaluate the adequacy of existing in-house mechanisms.
- Transfers of judges across High Courts are defended as ensuring impartiality but criticised as opaque. Critically examine with reference to the September 2026 batch of Chief Justice appointments.
Grounded only in the source report — figures and dates are the source's, not inferred.