Among the 9 names approved by the president for appointment as Supreme Court Judges, Justice BV Nagarathna's name has been making the most headlines. 

And for the right reasons.

Justice BV Nagarathna likely to become Chief Justice of India in 2027 but....

If everything goes as expected Justice BV Nagarathna would become the second Chief Justice Of India from her family. Her father E.S. Venkataramiah has held the coveted post for 6 months from June 1989 and December 1989. Although, this in itself is a rare feat, the year 2027 could be a historic one for the Indian Judiciary as Justice Nagarathna would be the first woman Chief Justice of India. Although, her tenure of 36 days might be one of the shortest. It will still be one of the most awaited tenures for the Supreme Court Judge. Interestingly, there were reports casting a doubt on her recommendation to the top court as Karnataka is fairly represented on the SC Bench.

Constitutional and commercial law matters were her forte during her career as a lawyer

She enrolled with the Bar Council of Karnataka in 1987 and practiced constitutional and commercial law in Bangalore.

However, her career gravitated towards the judiciary when she was appointed as an additional judge of the Karnataka High Court in 2008. She was appointed as a permanent judge on 17 February 2010.

Notable Judgements

Among the landmark judgments delivered by her is the one stressing the need to regulate electronic media. In the 2012 judgment, she wrote, “While truthful dissemination of information is an essential requirement of any broadcasting channel, sensationalism in the form of ‘Breaking News’, ‘Flash News’ or in any other form must be curbed.” She urged the Centre to set up an autonomous and statutory mechanism to regulate broadcast media.

Infamous Detention in the Karnataka High Court

In 2009, she and another judge, Venkate Gopala Gowda, were unlawfully detained, along with the then-Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court, P.D. Dinakaran, by a group of protesting lawyers in the Karnataka High Court. The incident occurred following the declaration of a boycott of courts by lawyers' association, who were protesting following allegations of corruption against P.D. Dinakaran. They were later released by the protesting lawyers.

Following the incident, Nagarathna made a public statement, saying, “We cannot be cowed down like this. We have taken the oath of Constitution

Here is the list of other names approved as Supreme Court Judges

Women judges:

Chief Justice of Telangana High Court, Justice Hima Kohli

Gujarat High Court judge, Justice Bela Trivedi

From Bar:

Senior Advocate PS Narasimha

High Court judges and Chief Justices:

Chief Justice of Karnataka High Court, Justice AS Oka

Chief Justice of Gujarat High Court, Justice Vikram Nath

Chief Justice of Sikkim High Court, Justice JK Maheshwari

Kerala High Court judge, Justice CT Ravikumar

Madras High Court Judge, Justice MM Sundaresh