Meet the lawyer who skipped High Court bench and went straight to India’s Supreme Court

A lawyer who has never served as a High Court judge has reached India's highest court, joining a small group of legal professionals who have taken one of the rarest routes to the Supreme Court.

The central government of India appointed five new judges, four High Court Chief Justices, and one Senior Advocate to the Supreme Court on Monday (June 1). The news was shared by the Union Minister of State (in charge) of Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal on the social media platform X. The appointments come days after the sanctioned strength of the Supreme Court was increased from 34 to 38 through an ordinance issued by the government.

One thing that is worth noting is that one of the judges has skipped the High Court and has directly entered the apex court of the country during this appointment. Venkita Subramani Mohana, a Senior Advocate, has been directly elevated from the Bar to the SC, rather than from the High Court, as most judges do. Hence, this becomes a rare move.

Why is it special?

There is an already established route, i.e., a lawyer in a HC or SC is appointed as a judge in HC and often becomes the Chief Justice of a High Court, and later on they are elevated to the SC. But Mohana did not follow this route. She was a Senior Advocate practising law, not a sitting High Court judge or Chief Justice, when she was recommended for appointment.

Article 124 of the Indian Constitution permits a person to be appointed a Supreme Court judge if they have:

• Served as a High Court judge for at least five years, or
• Been an advocate of the High Court for at least 10 years, or
• Been regarded by the President as a distinguished jurist.

The constitution allows it, but such cases come under exceptions.

There is a small group of judges in Indian history who have skipped the usual path and have directly entered the apex court. Some of the names are: Justice Rohinton Fali Nariman, Justice Uday Umesh Lalit, Justice Santosh Hegde.

Who are the 4 judges appointed along with Mohana?

Justice Sheel Nagu (Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court), Justice Shree Chandrashekhar (Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court), Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva (Chief Justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court), and Justice Arun Palli (Chief Justice of the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh) are other judges who have been appointed along with Mohana.