New Delhi: The Supreme Court Collegium, headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, on Tuesday recommended the elevation of four advocates as judges to the High Courts of Bombay, Karnataka and Madras. The Collegium, also comprising justices SK Kaul and Sanjiv Khanna, in a statement published on the apex court website said, “The Collegium of the Supreme Court has recommended the names of the following two advocates for appointment as judges of the Madras High Court that is N Senthil Kumar and G Arul Murugan”.
The recommendation for the appointment of the two advocates as judges of the Madras High Court was made by the Collegium of the Madras High Court on August 3, 2022. The Chief Minister and the Governor of Tamil Nadu concurred on the recommendation for the elevation of the two candidates.
On Senthil Kumar’s elevation, the Collegium said, “We have considered the inputs provided by the government in the file in conjunction with the report of the present Collegium of the High Court and the opinion of the consultee-judges in the Supreme Court, who have opined that the candidate is suitable for elevation. The candidate has a standing of over 28 years at the Bar”. The Collegium said the candidate belongs to a Scheduled Caste and his appointment as a judge of the High Court will enhance the representation on the bench to marginalised communities.
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On Murugan’s elevation, the Collegium said it has considered the inputs provided by the government in the file in conjunction with the report of the present Collegium of the High Court and the opinion of the consultee-judges, who have concurrently found that the candidate is suitable for appointment as a judge of the High Court. “The candidate belongs to the OBC category. His appointment as a judge will facilitate greater representation of the OBCs in appointment to the higher judiciary. Having regard to the above aspects, the Collegium is of the opinion that G Arul Murugan is suitable for the elevation to the Madras High Court," said the Collegium.
In a separate resolution, the Collegium recommended the name of Kurubarahalli Venkataramareddy Aravind, advocate, for appointment as a judge of the High Court of Karnataka. The Collegium said the inputs in the file indicate that nothing adverse to the integrity or character of KV Aravind has been noticed. “We have considered the opinion of the consultee-judges. The candidate has a standing of nearly 23 years at the Bar. He has appeared before the High Court as Standing Counsel for various departments of the State government," said the Collegium’s resolution.
In another resolution, the Collegium recommended the name of Manjusha Ajay Deshpande, advocate, for appointment as a judge of the High Court of Bombay. The Collegium said, “We have considered the inputs provided by the government in the file. These inputs have been evaluated by us in conjunction with the report of the then-acting Chief Justice of the High Court of Bombay (who has since assumed office as Chief Justice of the Madras High Court). Three consultee-judges of the Supreme Court have opined that Manjusha Ajay Deshpande is suitable for elevation. The Collegium of the High Court is well-positioned to ascertain her professional competence”.
The Collegium said, “In our assessment, the candidate is a competent lawyer. She has been in practice, since 1991, for over 32 years. The candidate is well-versed in several branches of law, particularly in constitutional and service matters. She has been on the panel of the government since 2013.”
