SC Collegium Recommends ACJ Ravindra Ghuge As Calcutta HC CJ, Justice MC Tripathi For Bombay HC

Mumbai: The Supreme Court Collegium has recommended Acting Chief Justice Ravindra Ghuge of the Bombay High Court as the next Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court, in a move that will see the senior Maharashtra judge take charge of another major High Court if the Centre approves the recommendation.

The Collegium, in its resolution passed on August 6, has also recommended Justice Mahesh Chandra Tripathi of the Allahabad High Court as the next Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court. The appointments will be formalised after the Central government clears them and issues notifications.

ACJ Ghuge To Move To Calcutta High Court

ACJ Ghuge was appointed Acting Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court in June after then Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar was elevated to the Supreme Court. He has served as a judge of the Bombay High Court since June 2013.

He has dealt with several important matters during his tenure, including cases concerning land, public health, administration and civic issues.

In one recent significant judgment, a bench headed by him upheld the rights of a private company in a long-running dispute over its land at in Thane. The court dismissed the State’s challenge to orders refusing to treat the entire land as private forest and directed the Thane Municipal Corporation to release statutory compensation to the landowner through Development Rights Certificates (DRCs/TDR) within 21 days.

A bench headed by him also took suo motu cognisance of the strike by doctors in Maharashtra, following which the agitation was called off. In proceedings concerning malnutrition and water scarcity in Melghat, the bench issued directions to ensure regular water supply to affected villages through tankers.

Justice Tripathi Recommended For Bombay High Court

As Acting Chief Justice, he recently headed a bench which criticised the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration for continuing the suspension of a hotel and restaurant licence despite a subsequent inspection showing full compliance. The court ordered restoration of the licence and questioned the department’s approach.

He has also been heading a three-judge bench hearing petitions relating to the controversial Maratha reservation issue in Maharashtra. The hearing in the matter, which is already being re-heard for the scone time, will have to be commenced for a third time, after the Centre clears ACJ’s elevation.

If approved, ACJ Ghuge will succeed Justice Tapabrata Chakraborty, who is currently the Acting Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court.

Born in 1966, ACJ Ghuge began practising in 1990 before the Bombay High Court and industrial and labour courts. He initially represented workers and unions before later appearing for several large industries and multinational companies. He was elevated to the High Court in 2013.

Justice Tripathi, meanwhile, is the second-senior-most judge of the Allahabad High Court and has presided over its principal bench. He was elevated as an additional judge in 2013 and became a permanent judge in 2015. If approved, he will become the 50th Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court.

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