Central Government Finally Notifies The Appointment Of Justice Akil Kureshi As Chief Justice Of Tripura High Court

After keeping the matter pending for months together, the central government finally notified the appointment of Justice Akil Kureshi as Chief Justice of the Tripura High Court on November 8, 2019.

“The President is pleased to appoint Justice Akil Kureshi, the judge of Bombay High Court, as the Chief Justice of Tripura High Court,” according to a government notification on that date.

The central government’s counsel had told the Supreme Court recently that nearly all administrative formalities in connection with the appointment had been completed, except the last signature.

A senior judge from the Gujarat High Court, Justice Akil Kureshi presently serves as a judge in the Bombay High Court, after a transfer.

In May 2019, the Supreme Court Collegium had recommended Justice Kureshi's elevation as Chief Justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, but the recommendation was not approved by the central government.

After the Supreme Court Collegium passed a resolution on September 5 which stated that the central government had returned the proposal of elevation of Justice Kureshi to the Madhya Pradesh High Court twice, the Gujarat High Advocates' Association (GHCAA) moved the Supreme Court, objecting to the central government’s reluctance about the appointment.

On 19 September, the Supreme Court stated that a decision had been taken about the Collegium recommendation to elevate Justice Kureshi and it will be published on the Supreme Court website.

However, on September 20, the Collegium modified its recommendation and approved appointment of Justice Kureshi as Chief Justice of the Tripura High Court.

Recently, the GHCAA sought a hearing after the central government notified the appointment of former Meghalaya High Court Chief Justice, Justice A K Mittal as the next Chief Justice of Madhya Pradesh on October 30.

GHCAA counsel senior advocate Arvind Datar told a bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi that the Supreme Court had already granted enough time to the central government on the matter, and sought a hearing.

Later, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed the Supreme Court that some administrative formalities were pending in connection with the Collegium recommendation to appoint Justice Kureshi as Chief Justice of Tripura High Court and requested the court to reschedule the next hearing.