KV Viswanathan in line to become CJI in 2030, collegium recommends name for SC judgeship

According to the news agency, senior advocate KV Viswanathan will become the 58th CJI in August 2030 for a period of over nine months if the Centre gives the nod.

He will be the fourth person to become the CJI, following Justices SM Sikri, UU Lalit, and PS Narasimha. Justice SM Sikri was the first CJI, who was directly elevated to the Supreme Court bench from the Bar. Justice UU Lalit was second. Sitting Supreme Court judge Justice PS Narasimha will become the third CJI who was directly elevated from the Bar.

He would be the 10th name in the list of lawyers to be appointed to the Supreme Court directly from the Bar, the Bar and Bench reported. The other judges who were appointed directly from the Bar were SC Roy, Kuldip Singh, Santosh Hegde, Rohinton Nariman, L Nageswara Rao and Indu Malhotra.

"On the retirement of Justice Jamshed Burjor Pardiwala on August 11, 2030, Viswanathan would be in line to assume office as the Chief Justice of India till his retirement on May 25, 2031," the Collegium said in its recommendation.

The recommendation said that at present, there is only one member (Justice PS Narasimha) from the Bar directly appointed to the Supreme Court bench.

It noted the Collegium also considered the names of eminent members of the Bar and zeroed upon senior advocate Viswanathan. It said he is "eminently suitable for being appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court".

"Viswanathan is a distinguished member of the Bar of the Supreme Court. His wide experience and profound knowledge will provide significant value addition to the Supreme Court," the resolution said.

Viswanathan, upon his appointment as a judge of the Supreme Court, would serve till May 25, 2031. He was Born on May 26, 1966.

The recommendation said Viswanathan had completed the five-year integrated law degree from Coimbatore Law College, Bharathiyar University, and enrolled with the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu in 1988.

The resolution said that after practising before the Supreme Court court for over two decades, Viswanathan was designated as a senior advocate in 2009.

It said Viswanathan appeared in a wide range of cases on diverse subjects including Constitutional law, criminal law, commercial law, the law of Insolvency, and arbitration.

"His stature as an eminent member of the Bar has been recognised by the Supreme Court in numerous cases where he was appointed to assist the Court as amicus curiae," it said.

During the recent hearings in the Supreme Court on a batch of pleas seeking legal validation for same-sex marriage, Viswanathan had argued before a five-judge Constitution bench for one of the petitioners.