Justice Akil Kureshi Takes Charge As Chief Justice Of Tripura HC

He will replace Chief Justice Sanjay Karol, who was recently transferred to the Patna High Court.

The Centre had notified Justice Kureshi's appointment vide notification dated October 30 based on the recommendation made by the Supreme Court Collegium on September 5; modifying the earlier proposal made on May 10 to appoint him as the Chief Justice of Madhya Pradesh.

The reasons for this modification were not cited in the Collegium resolution, which merely said that the decision was taken on the basis of two communications received from the Centre and accompanying material.

Even this modified proposal was kept pending by the Centre, although it had cleared several other recommendations which were made after the Collegium's decision on Justice Kureshi.

Justice Kureshi's elevation had become a subject of controversy after the Gujarat High Court Advocates Association filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court, alleging the Central Government of selectively blocking his elevation due to extraneous considerations. While hearing the petition, the SC had said on September 16 that a decision has been taken on the Justice Kureshi's elevation and that it will be published soon.

When the case was posted after the publication of the September 5 resolution, the Court accepted the request made by Senior Advocate Arvind P Datar for GHCAA to keep the matter pending till Centre notifies the recommendation.

Justice Kureshi, a senior judge of the Gujarat High Court, was transferred to Bombay High Court last October, amidst protests from the GHCAA. He enrolled as an Advocate in Gujarat after obtaining an LL.B. degree in 1983. He was appointed as an Additional Judge of the Gujarat High Court in March 2004 and was made a permanent judge in 2005.