New Delhi – Justice Dhananjay Chandrachud, the 50th Chief Justice of India, bids farewell to the Supreme Court today after a notable two-year tenure that has left an indelible mark on the Indian judiciary. Assumed office on November 8, 2022, Justice Chandrachud has been instrumental in shaping key legal precedents and enhancing the accessibility and efficiency of the judicial process. Born on November 11, 1959, to a lineage of legal luminaries his father, the late Y. V. Chandrachud, served as the 16th Chief Justice of India Justice Chandrachud has built a distinguished career in law. After completing his education at St. Stephen's College and Delhi University, he earned an LLM from Harvard University and subsequently a Doctorate in Juridical Sciences.
His professional journey began at the Bar Council of Maharashtra before he transitioned into academia, serving as a law professor at the University of Mumbai. Justice Chandrachud's judicial career commenced in 2000 when he was appointed as a judge of the Bombay High Court, later becoming the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court before his elevation to the Supreme Court in 2016. Over his illustrious career, he engaged in 1,275 bench hearings and authored an impressive 613 judgments, further solidifying his reputation as a legal scholar and reformer. Among his most significant rulings are landmark judgments that have redefined fundamental rights in India. In a pivotal 2017 case, KS Puttaswamy Vs. Union of India, a nine-judge bench unanimously recognized the right to privacy as a fundamental right under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution.
This decision arose from a challenge to the constitutionality of the Aadhaar Act and set a critical precedent for personal liberty. Another landmark ruling came on September 6, 2018, in the Navtej Singh Johar Vs. Union of India, where a five-judge bench decriminalized consensual same-sex relations by partially striking down Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code. This landmark decision underscored the court's commitment to equality and individual rights. Justice Chandrachud also presided over the historic Ayodhya verdict on November 9, 2019, in M. Siddique Vs. Manhat Suresh Das, where the court awarded the disputed land for the construction of the Sri Ram Janmabhoomi temple while ensuring that the Sunni Waqf Board was allocated alternate land for a mosque, showcasing a balanced approach to a highly sensitive issue.
Throughout his tenure, Justice Chandrachud championed the digitization of the Supreme Court, making it more user-friendly and accessible to the public. Before his retirement, he inaugurated the Supreme Court Museum, which features an innovative AI lawyer designed to simplify complex legal concepts for the general populace. As Justice Dhananjay Chandrachud steps down, his legacy as a progressive jurist advocating for fundamental rights, inclusivity, and judicial reform will undoubtedly resonate in the corridors of the Supreme Court for years to come. His contributions have not only shaped pivotal legal outcomes but have also fortified the principles of justice and equality in India’s ever-evolving legal landscape.
