Justice P.S. Dinesh Kumar was appointed Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court, the Law Ministry said in a notification on Wednesday.
Justice Kumar, however, will have a tenure of less than a month as he retires on February 24. He is at present the acting Chief Justice of the High Court after Justice P.B. Varale was elevated as a judge of the Supreme Court a few days ago. The Supreme Court Collegium had recommended his name to the government on January 19.
The Collegium had stated, “He has served the High Court of Karnataka with distinction since his appointment. In view of the fact that Justice P.S. Dinesh Kumar...has a short tenure, in terms of the Memorandum of Procedure, the Collegium resolves to recommend his appointment as the Chief Justice of the High Court of Karnataka.”
The Ministry also notified the elevation of a judicial officer, Arun Kumar Rai, as a judge of the Jharkhand High Court.
Permanent judges
Separately, the Law Ministry also notified that seven additional judges in three High Courts — Calcutta, Punjab and Haryana and Jharkhand — were confirmed as permanent judges.
An additional judge is usually confirmed as a permanent judge after a period of two years. However, one additional judge of the Calcutta High Court has been given more years’ extension in the same rank.
