Justice Pushpendra Singh Bhati appointed Chief Justice of J&K and Ladakh HC

Eight High Court judges appointed as Chief Justices

06/09/2026

NEW DELHI, Sep 5: The President has appointed Dr Justice Pushpendra Singh Bhati, Judge of the Rajasthan High Court, as the Chief Justice of the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
According to a notification issued by the Ministry of Law and Justice on September 5, the appointment has been made under clause (1) of Article 217 of the Constitution of India and will take effect from the date Justice Bhati assumes charge of his office.
Besides Justice Bhati, the other appointments are Justice Valluri Kameswar Rao, Judge of the Delhi High Court, as Chief Justice of the Patna High Court; Justice Ravindra V. Ghuge, Judge of the Bombay High Court, as Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court; Justice Sanjay Kumar Agrawal, Judge of the Chhattisgarh High Court, as Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court; Justice Mahesh Chandra Tripathi, Judge of the Allahabad High Court, as Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court; Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra, Judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, as Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court; Justice Krushna Ram Mohapatra, Judge of the Orissa High Court, as Chief Justice of the Chhattisgarh High Court; and Justice Alpesh Yeshwant Kogje, Judge of the Gujarat High Court, as Chief Justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court.
The notification was issued by the Department of Justice, Appointments Division, Government of India.
Justice Bhati was born on September 21, 1970, and enrolled as an advocate in 1992. He was elevated as a Judge of the Rajasthan High Court on November 16, 2016.
He holds BA, LL.B. and LL.M. degrees in Mercantile Law and a Ph.D. on "Promotion & Seniority in Public Employment, its Changing Dimensions and Role of Supreme Court."
He practised at the Rajasthan High Court, Jodhpur, mainly in writ jurisdiction, dealing with service laws, public interest litigation, elections, revenue, mining, education, Panchayati Raj, family, criminal and miscellaneous matters.
Justice Bhati served as Additional Advocate General, Rajasthan High Court, Jodhpur, from October 13 to December 29, 2008, and again from January 6, 2014, until his elevation to the Bench. He also served as panel lawyer for Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, Labour Department and Ayurved Department of the Rajasthan government. He represented the Reserve Bank of India, Jai Narain Vyas University, Jodhpur, and several other bodies, besides serving as Standing Counsel for Indian Railways for 16 years.
He was elected Member of the Bar Council of Rajasthan from 2009 to 2015. He served as President of the Rajasthan High Court Lawyers Association from 2011 to 2013 and as General Secretary of the Rajasthan High Court Advocates Association in 2001. He is a trained mediator of the Rajasthan High Court and has been a member of the Supreme Court Bar Association since 1992.
Justice Bhati was a visiting faculty member at the Faculty of Law, Jai Narain Vyas University, Jodhpur, from 1997 to 2016 and also taught for a year at the National Law University, Jodhpur. He is a member of the Executive Committee of the Indian Law Institute, Rajasthan chapter.
Apart from his legal career, Justice Bhati has participated in several adventure activities. He is an accomplished horse rider, swimmer, shooter, solo glider pilot and parasailor. He participated in various adventure activities through the NCC and holds A, B and C certificates. He has also participated in national conferences and television debates on issues relating to administration of justice.
He was Vice President of the Students Union of the Law Faculty at Jai Narain Vyas University during 1990-91.

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