Jammu, Apr 17: The collegium of the High Court of J&K and Ladakh, headed by Chief Justice Arun Palli, has recommended 11 names to fill vacant posts of High Court Judges.
Reliable sources told news Agency that the list includes 10 advocates from the Bar quota and one name from the Bench quota. This is the first time that such a large number of appointments have been processed in a single exercise by the High Court.
Chief Justice Arun Palli held extensive consultations with senior-most judges — Justice Sanjeev Kumar and Justice Sindhu Sharma — regarding all probable candidates before sending the final list to Raj Bhavan in J&K, with a copy to the Supreme Court collegium and the Union Law Ministry. Sources said the process had been underway for the past several days, with emphasis on ensuring representation from all regions and sections of society.
According to sources, the Bar quota list includes Vishal Sharma (presently Assistant Solicitor General of India, Jammu), Namgyal Wangchuk, Jahangir Iqbal Ganai, Pawan Kumar Kundal, Tahir Majid Shamshi (Deputy Solicitor General of India, Srinagar), Tabasum Zafar, Anupam Raina, Vikram Kumar Sharma, Amit Gupta (former Additional Advocate General), and Pranav Kohli. Senior judicial officer Yash Paul Bourney, currently member of the J&K Tribunal, has also been recommended for elevation.
To ensure representation of women advocates, Tabasum Zafar from Kashmir has been included in the list. If approved, she would become the first woman from Kashmir to be appointed as a High Court judge of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.
It is pertinent to mention that the High Court is currently functioning with 13 judges against a sanctioned strength of 25, leaving 12 vacancies, including 10 from the Bar quota. The present exercise aims to fill these posts.
At present, the High Court has 13 judges including Chief Justice Arun Palli, along with Justices Sanjeev Kumar, Sindhu Sharma, Rajnesh Oswal, Sanjay Dhar, Mohammad Akram Chowdhary, Rahul Bharti, Moksha Khajuria Kazmi, Wasim Sadiq Nargal, Rajesh Sekhri, Mohammad Yousuf Wani, Sanjay Parihar, and Shahzad Azeem.
Justice Javed Iqbal Wani had superannuated on March 23 this year, reducing the strength to 13.
In November 2024, the Union Ministry of Law and Justice, in consultation with the Chief Justice of India, increased the sanctioned strength of the High Court of J&K and Ladakh from 17 to 25 judges. This includes 19 permanent and 6 additional judges to address rising case pendency.
As per procedure, the Supreme Court collegium will examine the recommendations and forward them to the Union Law Ministry for clearance. The list will then go to the Prime Minister’s Office for final approval and subsequently to the President of India for issuance of appointment warrants. (Agency)
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