NEW DELHI: Days after the Supreme Court's collegium recommended the elevation of two judges to the top court, the Centre on Tuesday gave the go-ahead to it and notified the appointment of Justices N Kotiswar Singh and R Mahadevan as Supreme Court judges.
The SC Collegium's recommendation to appoint Justice Singh was a historic step, as he would be the first judge from Manipur to be appointed as a judge of the apex court.
The SC Collegium on Thursday, July 11, recommended Chief Justice of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh and Acting Chief of Madras High Court R Mahadevan for elevation to the apex court.
“His (Justice Singh) appointment as a Judge of the Supreme Court will provide representation to the North-East, and in particular, he will be the first judge from the State of Manipur to be appointed as a judge of the Supreme Court,” stated the resolution of the Collegium.
It further said, “Justice Singh has an impeccable record, both in judicial capacity and in terms of the work that has been rendered by him on the administrative side as the Chief Justice of the High Court for Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. Considering the candidature of Justice N Kotiswar Singh in terms of his judicial performance, administrative acumen, integrity and merit, the Collegium is of the view that he is eminently suitable for being appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court.
It is to be noted that Justice Mahadevan, born in 1963 in Chennai, graduated from the Madras Law College before being enrolled as an advocate in 1989. He mainly practiced on the civil, criminal, and writ sides, but his area of specialisation was tax law.
He was elevated as a judge of the High Court in 2013. He is well-known for his erudition in Tamil literature, ancient and modern. His late father, Maa. Aranganathan, was a Tamil writer of repute who ran a literary magazine called Mundril. Justice Mahadevan runs the Mundril Literary Society and has instituted the Maa. Aranganathan Literary Awards that are awarded annually to Tamil writers. The awards carry a cash prize of Rs. 1 lakh and a citation.
The SC Collegium consists of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices Sanjiv Khanna, BR Gavai, Surya Kant, and Hrishikesh Roy.