On Thursday, the President of India officially appointed Supreme Court judge Sanjiv Khanna as the new Chief Justice of India. Justice Khanna will be the 51st Chief Justice, taking over on November 11, following the retirement of CJI Chandrachud. After an impactful two-year tenure during which CJI Chandrachud transformed the judicial system and delivered several landmark rulings, he is set to retire on November 10.

Who Is Justice Sanjiv Khanna?

Justice Sanjiv Khanna, currently a Supreme Court judge, will serve as Chief Justice for six months, as he is scheduled to retire on May 13, 2025. Elevated to the Supreme Court in January 2019, he comes from a distinguished legal background, being related to the notable judge Hans Raj Khanna, who resigned during the Emergency.

Prior to his appointment to the Supreme Court, Justice Khanna served as a judge on the Delhi High Court for 14 years, starting in 2005. He is well-regarded for his expertise in taxation and commercial law, having authored numerous significant judgments over the past two decades.

Recently, Justice Khanna's bench garnered attention for granting regular bail to AAP MP Sanjay Singh and interim bail to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in the Delhi Liquor scam. In April 2024, he authored a ruling that dismissed a plea for full cross-verification of votes cast in electronic voting machines (EVMs) with Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT), emphasizing the integrity of EVMs and the trust placed in the Election Commission of India (ECI).

In March, his bench rejected an application to stay laws regarding the appointment of election commissioners, citing the upcoming Lok Sabha elections and the impracticality of granting such a stay. He also criticized the government for hastily appointing election commissioners. Additionally, Justice Khanna was part of the bench that struck down the constitutional validity of the electoral bonds scheme and upheld the abrogation of Article 370, among other notable decisions.