DEHRADUN: The long-drawn legal saga surrounding Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer Sanjiv Chaturvedi has reached an unprecedented milestone, with a record 16th judge now stepping away from hearing his matters.
In the latest development, Justice Alok Verma, a senior judge of the Uttarakhand High Court, has recused himself from a contempt case filed by Chaturvedi. The case challenges the alleged “wilful disobedience” of a stay order by members and the registry of the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT).
This latest withdrawal adds to a growing list of recusals, setting a unique precedent in the country’s judicial history concerning a single litigant.
Justice Verma’s recusal follows closely on the heels of another High Court judge. Just a fortnight earlier, on 26 September, Justice Ravindra Maithani had ordered that the case be, “List before another Bench of which I (Ravindra Maithani, J.) am not the member.”
Justice Verma’s order on Wednesday was equally terse, simply stating: “List before another Bench.” Like many preceding withdrawals, it offered no specific justification—an unusual characteristic noted by legal observers.
Justice Verma is the fourth High Court judge this year alone to distance himself from Chaturvedi’s litigation. Earlier this year, Justice Rakesh Thapliyal had recused himself in May 2023 from a case concerning documents related to Chaturvedi’s tenure as Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO) at AIIMS, while Justice Manoj Tiwari had recused himself in February 2024 regarding Chaturvedi’s central deputation case.
This marks the sixth judicial recusal this year in Chaturvedi’s matters. It includes withdrawals by two CAT judges — Harvinder Oberai and B Anand — in February 2025, and by Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate (ACJM) Neha Kushwaha in April 2025.
“This frequency is truly startling,” noted one legal analyst, requesting anonymity. “When a case involves this many high-ranking judicial officials stepping aside, it naturally raises concerns about the path to final adjudication.”
In total, the judges who have recused themselves include two Supreme Court judges — Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice U.U. Lalit — four High Court judges, two lower court judges, and eight CAT members, including a former Chairman.
The CAT Bench of Oberai and Anand had recused themselves in February 2025 while hearing a critical case concerning the alleged downgrading of Chaturvedi’s Annual Performance Appraisal Report (APAR) by the then Union Health Minister, J.P. Nadda.
Chaturvedi, known for his persistent anti-corruption efforts, has faced several legal battles, many of which have seen the judiciary intervene regarding where his sensitive matters should be heard. In 2018, the Uttarakhand High Court had mandated that his APAR case be heard only at the Nainital Circuit Bench, a decision later upheld by the Supreme Court.
When contacted by TNIE, Sudarshan Goyal, who had earlier been Chaturvedi’s senior advocate, commented, “This is a very unusual recusal. If this trend prevails in the country, how will a person get justice here, and that too when a senior IFS officer who is fighting against corruption in the system?”
