CJI Recommends Justice Gavai as Successor

Justice Gavai, who was elevated to the Supreme Court on May 24, 2019, will have a tenure of over six months as CJI, retiring on November 23, 2025. His appointment follows the procedure outlined in the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP), which mandates the Union Law Ministry to seek a recommendation from the incumbent CJI, typically naming the senior-most judge as the successor.

Born on November 24, 1960, in Amravati, Maharashtra, Justice Gavai began his legal career in 1985. He served as standing counsel for the Municipal Corporations of Nagpur and Amravati and was appointed assistant government pleader and public prosecutor at the Bombay High Court’s Nagpur Bench. He was made a government pleader and public prosecutor in 2000 and elevated as an additional judge of the Bombay High Court in 2003. He became a permanent judge in 2005.

In an important recent decision, a bench headed by Justice Gavai laid down nationwide guidelines prohibiting property demolitions without prior notice, requiring a 15-day response period for affected parties.
He currently heads a bench dealing with critical environmental issues related to forests, wildlife, and tree protection.
Justice Gavai’s elevation is notable as he will be one of the few Chief Justices of India from a Scheduled Caste background.
During his tenure at the Supreme Court, Justice Gavai has been part of several landmark Constitution Bench rulings:

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• In December 2023, he was on the five-judge bench that unanimously upheld the Centre’s abrogation of Article 370, which revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.
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• He was part of the bench that struck down the electoral bonds scheme for political funding.
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• In another significant verdict, he supported the Centre’s 2016 demonetisation move through a 4:1 majority ruling.
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• Justice Gavai was also on the seven-judge bench that ruled states can create sub-classifications within Scheduled Castes for targeted reservations.
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• He contributed to a verdict allowing enforcement of arbitration clauses in unstamped or inadequately stamped agreements, ruling that such defects are curable.