Justice Sanjiv Khanna: The New Chief Justice of India Who Has Handled Several Landmark Cases
Justice Sanjiv Khanna took the oath as the 51st Chief Justice of India on November 11 at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. During the ceremony, President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and other distinguished guests were present.
He is a resident of Delhi and completed all his education in the city. He was born on May 14, 1960. His father, Justice Dev Raj Khanna, served as a judge in the Delhi High Court before retiring.
Justice Sanjiv Khanna’s Mother Was a Hindi Lecturer at Lady Shri Ram College
Justice Sanjiv Khanna's mother, Saroj Khanna, was a lecturer in Hindi at Lady Shri Ram College, Delhi University.
Justice Khanna completed his schooling at Modern School in New Delhi and graduated in 1977. After school, he pursued his law studies at the Campus Law Centre (CLC) under the Faculty of Law, Delhi University.
Justice Sanjiv Khanna: A Deep Expertise in Several Key Areas of Law
Sanjiv Khanna was enrolled as a lawyer with the Delhi Bar Council in 1983. Initially, he practiced in the district courts at the Tis Hazari complex in Delhi and later at the Delhi High Court, specializing in constitutional law, direct taxation, arbitration, and various tribunals.
He has an exceptional command over commercial law, corporate law, land law, environmental law, and medical negligence laws.
Khanna served as the senior standing counsel for the Income Tax Department, holding the longest tenure in this position.
In 2004, he was appointed as the standing counsel (Civil) for Delhi. He also appeared and argued in several criminal cases as an additional public prosecutor and amicus curiae at the Delhi High Court.
Justice Sanjiv Khanna: Promoted to Delhi High Court Additional Judge in 2005
In 2005, he was promoted to the position of Additional Judge of the Delhi High Court and became a permanent judge in 2006.
While serving as a judge at the Delhi High Court, he also held the positions of Chairman/In-charge Judge of the Delhi Judicial Academy, the Centre and District Court Mediation Centre, and the Delhi International Arbitration Centre.
Justice Sanjiv Khanna: Appointed as Supreme Court Judge in 2019
On January 18, 2019, he was appointed as a judge of the Supreme Court of India. He served as the Chairman of the Supreme Court Legal Services Committee from June 17, 2023, to December 25, 2023.
He is currently the Executive Chairman of the National Legal Services Authority and a member of the Governing Council of the National Judicial Academy in Bhopal.
Justice Sanjiv Khanna will remain in office as the Chief Justice of India until May 13, 2025.
Justice Sanjiv Khanna: Involved in Major Supreme Court Rulings
Since his appointment in January 2019, Justice Sanjiv Khanna has been involved in several landmark decisions in the Supreme Court of India.
These include cases related to VVPAT verification, the electoral bond scheme, the abrogation of Article 370, divorce under Article 142, interim bail for Arvind Kejriwal, and the RTI decision.
