SC Collegium recommends 12 additional judges as permanent in Gauhati, Uttarakhand, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh HCs

New Delhi: The Supreme Court Collegium, led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, has recommended the appointment of 12 additional judges as permanent judges in the Gauhati, Uttarakhand, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh High Courts.

The decisions were taken at the Collegium’s meeting on September 23 and have been placed on the Supreme Court’s official Collegium resolutions page.

Justice Kaushik Goswami has been recommended for appointment as a permanent judge of the Gauhati High Court, while Justice Subhash Upadhyay has been recommended for permanent elevation in the Uttarakhand High Court.

The Collegium has also cleared the names of five additional judges for permanent appointment to the Kerala High Court. They are Justices P. Krishna Kumar, K.V. Jayakumar, Muralee Krishna S., Jobin Sebastian and P.V. Balakrishnan.

For the Andhra Pradesh High Court, the Collegium recommended the permanent appointment of Justices Maheswara Rao Kuncheam, also referred to as Kuncham; Thoota Chandra Dhana Sekar, also known as T.C.D. Sekhar; Challa Gunaranjan; Avadhanam Hari Haranadha Sarma; and Dr Yadavalli Lakshmana Rao.

The recommendations will take effect only after the Centre processes them and the President issues warrants of appointment.

Under Article 217(1) of the Constitution, High Court judges are appointed by the President. Additional Judges are appointed under Article 224(1), while their elevation as permanent judges is considered on the basis of several factors, including case disposal, judgments delivered, reported decisions and attendance records.

For such recommendations, the Chief Justice of the concerned High Court is required to submit the judge’s month-wise disposal figures, details of judgments authored, reported rulings, working days and attendance during the relevant assessment period.

(Inputs from IANS)