Chief Justices of India

The Chief Justice of India (CJI) is the highest judicial authority in the country and leads the Supreme Court of India. The CJI holds the critical responsibility of upholding the principles of fair and impartial justice. Over the years, several eminent jurists have held this esteemed position, contributing to India's legal system through important decisions and reforms.

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Current Chief Justice of India

Here is the The Complete list of Chief Justices of India: 

No. 

Name  

Date of Appointment 

Held Office Till 

1. 

Hon'ble Justice Harilal Jekisundas Kania 

26/01/1950 

06/11/1951 

2. 

Hon'ble Justice M. Patanjali Sastri 

07/11/1951 

03/01/1954 

3. 

Hon'ble Justice Mehr Chand Mahajan 

04/01/1954 

22/12/1954 

4. 

Hon'ble Justice Bijan Kumar Mukherjea 

23/12/1954 

31/01/1956 

5. 

Hon'ble Justice Sudhi Ranjan Das 

01/02/1956 

30/09/1959 

6. 

Hon'ble Justice Bhuvneshwar Prasad Sinha 

01/10/1959 

31/01/1964 

7. 

Hon'ble Justice P.B. Gajendragadkar 

01/02/1964 

15/03/1966 

8. 

Hon'ble Justice A.K. Sarkar 

16/03/1966 

29/06/1966 

9. 

Hon'ble Justice K. Subba Rao 

30/06/1966 

11/04/1967 

10. 

Hon'ble Justice K.N. Wanchoo 

12/04/1967 

24/02/1968 

11. 

Hon'ble Justice M. Hidayatullah 

25/02/1968 

16/12/1970 

12. 

Hon'ble Justice J.C. Shah 

17/12/1970 

21/01/1971 

13. 

Hon'ble Justice S.M. Sikri 

22/01/1971 

25/04/1973 

14. 

Hon'ble Justice A.N. Ray 

26/04/1973 

28/01/1977 

15. 

Hon'ble Justice M. Hameedullah Beg 

29/01/1977 

21/02/1978 

16. 

Hon'ble Justice Y.V. Chandrachud 

22/02/1978 

11/07/1985 

17. 

Hon'ble Justice P.N. Bhagwati 

12/07/1985 

20/12/1986 

18. 

Hon'ble Justice R.S. Pathak 

21/12/1986 

18/06/1989 

19. 

Hon'ble Justice E.S. Venkataramiah 

19/06/1989 

17/12/1989 

20. 

Hon'ble Justice Sabyasachi Mukherjee 

18/12/1989 

25/09/1990 

21. 

Hon'ble Justice Ranganath Misra 

25/09/1990 

24/11/1991 

22. 

Hon'ble Justice K.N. Singh 

25/11/1991 

12/12/1991 

23. 

Hon'ble Justice M.H. Kania 

13/12/1991 

17/11/1992 

24. 

Hon'ble Justice L.M. Sharma 

18/11/1992 

11/02/1993 

25. 

Hon'ble Justice M.N. Venkatachaliah 

12/02/1993 

24/10/1994 

26. 

Hon'ble Justice A.M. Ahmadi 

25/10/1994 

24/03/1997 

27. 

Hon'ble Justice J.S. Verma 

25/03/1997 

17/01/1998 

28. 

Hon'ble Justice M.M. Punchhi 

18/01/1998 

09/10/1998 

29. 

Hon'ble Dr. Justice A.S. Anand 

10/10/1998 

31/10/2001 

30. 

Hon'ble Justice S.P. Bharucha 

01/11/2001 

05/05/2002 

31. 

Hon'ble Justice B.N. Kirpal 

06/05/2002 

07/11/2002 

32. 

Hon'ble Justice G.B. Pattanaik 

08/11/2002 

18/12/2002 

33. 

Hon'ble Justice V.N. Khare 

19/12/2002 

01/05/2004 

34. 

Hon'ble Justice S. Rajendra Babu 

02/05/2004 

31/05/2004 

35. 

Hon'ble Justice R.C. Lahoti 

01/06/2004 

31/10/2005 

36. 

Hon'ble Justice Y.K. Sabharwal 

01/11/2005 

13/01/2007 

37. 

Hon'ble Justice K.G. Balakrishnan 

14/01/2007 

12/05/2010 

38. 

Hon'ble Justice S.H. Kapadia 

12/05/2010 

28/09/2012 

39. 

Hon'ble Justice Altamas Kabir 

29/09/2012 

18/07/2013 

40. 

Hon'ble Justice P. Sathasivam 

19/07/2013 

26/04/2014 

41. 

Hon'ble Justice R. M. Lodha 

27/04/2014 

27/09/2014 

42. 

Hon'ble Justice H.L. Dattu 

28/09/2014 

02/12/2015 

43. 

Hon'ble Justice T. S. Thakur 

03/12/2015 

03/01/2017 

44. 

Hon'ble Jagdish Singh Khehar 

04/01/2017 

27/08/2017 

45. 

Hon'ble Justice Dipak Misra 

28/08/2017 

02/10/2018 

46. 

Hon'ble Ranjan Gogoi 

03/10/2018 

17/11/2019 

47. 

Hon'ble Sharad Arvind Bobde 

18/11/2019 

23/04/2021 

48. 

Hon'ble Nuthalapati Venkata Ramana 

24/04/2021 

26/08/2022 

49. 

Hon'ble UU Lalit 

27/08/2022 

08/11/2022 

50. 

Hon'ble DY Chandrachud 

09/11/2022 

10/11/2024 

51. 

Hon'ble Justice Sanjiv Khanna 

11/11/2024 

Present 

FAQs on Chief Justice of India

  • Who is the Chief Justice of India (CJI)?

      The Chief Justice of India is the head of the judicial system of India and the Supreme Court, the highest constitutional court in the country.  

  • How is the Chief Justice of India appointed?

    The President of India appoints the CJI, typically based on seniority—the longest-serving Supreme Court judge is usually selected.

  • Who was the first Chief Justice of India?

    Justice Harilal J. Kania was the first Chief Justice of India, serving from January 26, 1950, to November 6, 1951.  

  • Who is the current Chief Justice of India as of 2025?

      As of April 2025, the current CJI is Justice D. Y. Chandrachud, who assumed office on November 9, 2022. He is the 50th Chief Justice of India.  

  • How many CJIs have there been so far?

      As of 2025, India has had 50 Chief Justices.  

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