The North News
New Delhi, April 16
In a significant development, Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna on Wednesday formally recommended Justice B R Gavai as his successor to the Union Ministry of Law and Justice. Justice Khanna, who assumed the top judicial post on November 11, 2024, is scheduled to retire on May 13, 2025, marking a brief six-month tenure at the helm of the Supreme Court.
Justice Gavai, currently serving on the Supreme Court bench, is next in line as per the seniority convention. Born on November 24, 1960, in Amravati, Maharashtra, Justice Gavai began his legal career in 1985 and went on to establish himself as a distinguished practitioner, particularly in constitutional and administrative law.
He apprenticed under Bar Raja S. Bhonsale, a former Advocate General and judge of the Bombay High Court, before starting independent practice at the Bombay High Court and later at its Nagpur Bench. His clientele included several municipal bodies and autonomous institutions, such as the Municipal Corporations of Nagpur and Amravati, and entities like SICOM and DCVL.
Justice Gavai was appointed Assistant Government Pleader and Additional Public Prosecutor in 1992 and later served as Government Pleader and Public Prosecutor at the Nagpur Bench from 2000. He was elevated to the judiciary as an Additional Judge of the Bombay High Court in 2003 and became a permanent judge in 2005.
During his tenure on the Bombay High Court, he presided over benches across its principal seat in Mumbai and circuit benches in Nagpur, Aurangabad, and Panaji. He was elevated to the Supreme Court on May 24, 2019, and is due to retire on November 23, 2025.
