Justice Mahesh Chandra Tripathi Sworn in as 50th Bombay High Court Chief Justice
Justice Mahesh Chandra Tripathi was sworn in as the new Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court in Mumbai on Wednesday. Governor of Maharashtra Jishnu Dev Varma administered the official oath of office to the new Chief Justice during the swearing-in ceremony. A video of the official ceremony has also surfaced online.
Justice Tripathi was serving as a judge of the Allahabad High Court prior to his appointment to lead the Bombay High Court. With his swearing-in, he becomes the 50th Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court. He is also only the second Chief Justice of the court to be elevated from the Allahabad High Court.
The President of India approved his appointment as Chief Justice on September 5. Prior to the presidential approval, the Union government had cleared his appointment on Saturday, acting upon the recommendation of the Supreme Court Collegium. The Collegium had formally recommended Justice Tripathi's appointment during its meeting on August 6.
Born into a family with a legal background, Justice Tripathi completed his law degree from Lucknow University in 1990. He then enrolled as an advocate on January 11, 1992. Throughout his years in the legal profession, his practice was primarily focused on civil matters.
Beginning in October 2007, Justice Tripathi served as Additional Chief Standing Counsel for the Uttar Pradesh government. During his advocacy career, he represented several government bodies and public institutions, including the Kanpur Development Authority, Kanpur Nagar Nigam, the Uttar Pradesh Food and Essential Commodities Corporation, the Agra Development Authority, and the Moradabad Development Authority. He also appeared in legal matters for Kumaun University.
Justice Tripathi was elevated to the Allahabad High Court as an additional judge on September 27, 2013. He was subsequently appointed as a permanent judge of the high court on April 10, 2015, continuing his judicial service there before his elevation to Maharashtra.
His appointment comes at a time when the Bombay High Court is functioning with a notable shortage of judges. The court currently has 74 judges serving against an officially sanctioned strength of 94 judges, leaving 20 judicial positions vacant.
