Centre notifies Justices Kotishwar Singh, R Mahadevan's appointment as Supreme Court judges

 

Singh was appointed Chief Justice of the Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh High Court on February 12 last year and took oath of office on February 15.

Indian Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal said on Tuesday that President Droopadi Mumru has appointed Justices H.N. Kotiwar Singh and R. Mahadevan as Supreme Court judges.

Justice Singh is currently the Chief Justice of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, while R. Mahadevan is a judge of the Madras High Court.

Singh was appointed Chief Justice in February last year. He will take oath of office on February 15, 2023. He is the first Supreme Court judge from the northeastern state of Manipur.

His name was unanimously recommended on 12 July by a council chaired by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and consisting of Justices Sanjiv Khanna, B R Gavai, Surya Kant and Hrishikesh Roy.

Justice Singh was born on 1 March 1963 in Imphal, Manipur, to Justice N Ibotombi Singh of the Gauhati High Court, who was the first Chief Justice of Manipur, and N Gomathi Devi.

He practiced briefly at the Supreme Court of India before moving to the Gauhati High Court. Justice Singh was admitted as a senior advocate by the Gauhati High Court in 2008, appointed as an additional judge of the court in 2011 and promoted to a permanent judge in 2012.

He was appointed as a judge on the establishment of the Manipur High Court in 2013. He was transferred to the Gauhati High Court in 2018 and subsequently promoted as Chief Justice.

With his appointment, Manipur state has representation in the Supreme Court for the first time after over 50 years of statehood.

Justice R. Mahadevan is currently the sitting Chief Justice of the Madras High Court and belongs to the lower caste. He holds a law degree from the Madras Law University and began practicing law in 1989.

He has practiced civil, criminal and judicial litigation with a focus on indirect taxes, customs and state excise for 25 years. He was appointed as a Judge of the Madras High Court in 2013.