Himachal High Court set to get three new Judges as SC Collegium approves elevation
Shimla/New Delhi, June 3
The Supreme Court Collegium has reportedly, approved the elevation of three senior judicial officers as judges of the Himachal Pradesh High Court, paving the way for strengthening the strength of the state’s higher judiciary. The decision was taken in the Collegium meeting held on June 2.
According to the statement issued by the Supreme Court, the Collegium has approved the appointment of Chirag Bhanu Singh, Bhupesh Sharma and Yogesh Jaswal as judges of the Himachal Pradesh High Court. The recommendations will now be forwarded to the Central Government for issuance of warrants of appointment by the President of India.
The elevation of Chirag Bhanu Singh assumes particular significance as it comes nearly two years after a legal battle over the process of judicial appointments in Himachal Pradesh. In an unprecedented development, senior district judges Chirag Bhanu Singh and Arvind Malhotra had approached the Supreme Court after their names were allegedly not considered by the Himachal Pradesh High Court Collegium despite earlier directions from the apex court collegium for reconsideration.
In September 2024, the Supreme Court set aside the decision of the Himachal Pradesh High Court Collegium, holding that the process suffered from lack of proper consultation and directing that the cases of the two judicial officers be reconsidered in accordance with law. The judgment was viewed as a landmark intervention by the apex court in the collegium process.
Among the newly recommended judges, Bhupesh Sharma is presently serving as Registrar General of the Himachal Pradesh High Court, while Yogesh Jaswal has been serving as District and Sessions Judge, Sirmaur at Nahan.
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The latest recommendations are expected to partially address vacancies in the Himachal Pradesh High Court and improve judicial functioning in the state. Once notified by the Centre, the three judicial officers will take oath as judges of the High Court and join the constitutional bench of the state.
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