Introduction

Recently, Justice Suryakant has taken the oath as Chief Justice of India. The Chief Justice of India (CJI) is the highest-ranking judge in the country and the head of the entire judicial system. If the courts function as the Constitution’s “brain,” the CJI directs that brain to render justice. 

The CJI’s function is significant because they:

• protect the Constitution,
• safeguard that everybody has access to justice, and
• keep the government acting within the bounds of the Constitution. 

“Justice is not simply a matter of rules — it is the light that illuminates democracy.”

Constitutional Position of the CJI

The Chief Justice of India occupies a distinct and powerful place in the Constitution. There are no articles that discuss CJI powers in any detail, yet they are the leader of the Supreme Court and the custodian of justice.

Key Articles

• Article 124 – establishes the Supreme Court and the appointment of SC justices
• Article 130 – seat of the Supreme Court requires CJI’s approval
• Article 145 – CJI makes rules and regulates procedures of the Supreme Court
• Article 146 – CJI runs the court’s officers and staff

Roles of CJI

• Head of the entire Indian judiciary.
• Custodian of Fundamental Rights.
• Final interpreter of the Constitution.
• Administrative head of the Supreme Court.
• The CJI works to make sure that the courts are independent, neutral, and

Appointment of the Chief Justice of India

India has a very simple and a respectable practice to appoint its Chief Justice – the Seniority Convention.

1. Seniority Convention

The senior-most judge of the Supreme Court automatically ascends to the position of CJI.
This prevents politics, bias or lobbying from interfering with the appointment.

2. The Outgoing CJI’s Role

When the current CJI is approaching retirement, he/she informs the government of his/her recommendation regarding the senior-most judge to be appointed as the next CJI.

3. The Appointment of the President

Based on this recommendation, the President of India formally appoints the new CJI.

4. No Political Interference

There is:

• No voting
• No interview
• No political selection

5. Promoting Judicial Independence

This ensures that the appointing process is free from outside influence and complete confidence in the appointment process.

Powers & Functions of CJI

The Chief Justice of India is the “captain” of the Supreme Court. The CJI has power to pull both courtrooms (judicial powers) and administration (office powers) towards the goal of ensuring justice operates smoothly, quickly and fairly.

Judicial Powers of CJI

These are the powers based on which the CJI operates from the court in order to ensure significant cases are properly dealt with.

1. Forms Benches

The CJI travels with discretion to decide which judges to sit together to hear a case – e.g. 2 judge bench, 3 judge bench

2. Assign Cases

The CJI designates the judge who will hear each case for consideration.
This will eliminate confusion and ensures that cases are assigned to the correct judges.

3. Dealt with Matters Associated with the Constitution

Any significant topic related to the Constitution — whether it is salaries and allowances of judges, elections, federalism and dry national issues — is assigned to benches established by the CJI.

4. Reconsider Earlier Decisions

If the Supreme Court made a decision a long time ago and that issue needs to be reevaluated, the CJI can establish a larger bench (5, 7 or 9 judges) to reconsider the law and provide an interpretation.

Administrative Powers of the CJI

Beyond the court, the CJI has a role as the administrative officer of the Supreme Court.

1. Head of Supreme Court Administration

Every office, staff and internal administrative function of the Supreme Court is performed under the CJI’s charge.

2. Controls the Roster

The CJI prepares the “roster” — a comprehensive table, chart or time admitted — reflecting:

• which judges hear which particular types of cases
• which judges sit on which benches.

For this reason, the CJI is known as the “Master of the Roster!”

3. Supervises the Registry and Administrative Practices in Court

The CJI ensures various rules of the court are being observed; for instance, ensuring all documents are properly filed, listed in timely fashion, all courtrooms are dealing with court business in order and the rules of the court are being updated when required.

Responsibility of the CJI in the Collegium System

Responsibilities of the CJI Related to the Collegium

1. Leads the 5-Judge Collegium

The CJI is the head of the collegium that consists of the four senior-most judges of the Supreme Court.

2. Appoints High Court & Supreme Court Judges

The CJI and the collegium recommends to the President the following:

• appoints new judges to the SC (there are currently 33 judges in the SC, including the CJI),
• appoints judges within High Courts (as of now there are 25 High Courts),
• confirms temporary additional judges as permanent judges within High Courts,
• timely elevations of judges, when appropriate, as Chief Justices of High Courts.

3. Transfers Judges

The CJI and the collegium can recommend transfers of High Court judges from one state to another in the interests of fair and effective judgments.

Controversies Regarding the Office of the CJI

The office of the CJI is a powerful office and that sometimes leads to public debates and controversies at times.

1. Master of the Roster Controversy

The CJI has control over allocation of cases to different judges. Critics have argued that the CJI has:

• too much power as a single entity to control what cases are allocated to what judges,
• risk of some sensitive controversial cases being assigned to certain benches addressing national debates on being transparent.

2. Opacity of the Collegium

The collegium is often criticized because:

• decisions made by the collegium do not offer a full explanation, and
• the reasons for not choosing candidates, or rejecting previous judges as a collegium member may have previously recommended or supported the judicial candidate.

3. Inability to Benefit from Long-Term Positions

Many CJIs have had extremely short tenures, sometimes just a couple of months. Short tenure makes it difficult to lead long-term reform in:

• reducing backlog,
• judicial infrastructure,
• digitisation

Why India Has Never Had a Woman CJI

Historic Causes

Women entered the legal profession and, eventually, the judiciary, considerably later than men.

The first female judge appointed to the Supreme Court was not until 1989 (Justice M. Fathima Beevi). Over the course of time, at least per historical presidential selections, one would expect approximately 3–4 out of 50 judges actively sitting on the Court to be women, limiting perspective CIJ possibilities.

Systematic Causes

1. Seniority Rule:

India follows a rigidly seniority-based system when choosing the cji .
Thus, no matter how talented a female judge may be, she can only become cji if her seniority permits.

2. Collegium’s Lack of Diversity Initiatives:

The collegium appointed judges have not overtly signaled gender diversity preferences when promoting justices, thus women judges have faced additional obstacles and limited access.

Women are starting off at a disadvantage with low entry → low seniority → low chances of becoming cji.

Social & Professional Barriers

A small percent of women advance, nor are they weighted as heavily in less than the top tiers of the profession (i.e., senior lawyers, high court judges, etc.).

There were deliberate biases in the structures and all judges, add flexibility of work & family, plus lack of promotion structures. Judicial pipelines historically have resulted in very, negligible female judges thus,

The Future: India’s First Woman CJI

Justice B.V. Nagarathna is set to be the first female cji in India based on seniority line in 2030. (appointed to sc in 2012). Her appointment would mark a historic step for gender representation in India’s judiciary.

Scholars’ Thoughts on Why India has not had a Woman Chief Justice of India

A plethora of constitutional scholars, gender-rights scholars, and judicial commentators have explored what contributes to the absence of a woman Chief Justice of India. Their commentary reflects structural, historical, and institutional bias.

1. Dr. B.R. Ambedkar (Historical Lens)

While Ambedkar did not speak to that specifically, he often reminded members of the Constituent Assembly, “political democracy must accompany social democracy.” Scholars consider this to mean that inequality of gender in institutions is eventually understood according to historic bias, including appointments of judges in the court system.

2. Prof. Upendra Baxi (Constitutional Scholar)

Prof. Baxi adjudges it to be a function of the “pipeline issue” – not enough women have made it to the higher judiciary, due to the fact that the judiciary has been underrepresented by women for decades in relation to:

a) litigation,
b) High Courts, and
c) senior designation at the Bar.

Prof. Baxi describes this societal structure as a “Structural barrier as opposed to a flaw of the Constitution.”

3. Justice (Retd.) Leila Seth

India’s first woman Chief Justice of a High Court said, “Women are not without ability, they are without opportunity, at the apex of the Judiciary.”

Justice Seth’s comments point toward the seniority system being a challenge that disadvantages women, as they may not have been solicited for appointments early on in their careers.

4. Menaka Guruswamy (Legal Academic, Oxford)

She observes that informal norms of the judiciary – such as who gets appointed in what capacities, what it means to be “fit” for the bench, who is mentored – often benefit men.
She calls this “gendered gatekeeping in elite institutions.”

5. Indira Jaising (Senior Advocate)

Jaising asserts that the collegium should consciously encourage diversity and calls the absence of women CJI’s a “democratic deficit.“
Jaising also points to the unequal pool of women senior advocates, which will ultimately lessen the candidate pool of judges.

6. Dr. Vrinda Grover (Human Rights Lawyer)

Grover claims that the seniority convention inadvertently locks women out for the following reasons:

• Very few women are elevated at early stages.
• When women are elevated, they have been served for limited periods.
• This means that women’s chances of actually ascension to CJIs are minuscule.

Countries That Have Had Women Chief Justices

UPSC PYQ Table on Chief Justice of India (CJI)

FAQs

1. On what basis was Justice Suryakant appointed as CJI?

Seniority convention + recommendation by outgoing CJI.

2. What is the tenure of CJI Suryakant?

CJI Suryakant took oath on 24th November,2025 until he turns 65.

3. What is the role of CJI Suryakant in the Collegium?

Heading appointments & transfers of judges across High Courts.

4. What administrative reforms is CJI Suryakant expected to focus on?

Case backlog reduction, e-courts, improving judicial transparency.