Collegium appoints Justice S Vaidhyanathan as Chief Justice of Meghalaya HC

CHENNAI: The Collegium of the Supreme Court on Thursday appointed Justice S Vaidhyanathan of Madras High Court as the Chief Justice of Meghalaya High Court.

The notification released by the Collegium stated that as per the memorandum of procedure relating the appointment of Chief Justice " The consideration for appointment of Chief Justices shall be based on the criterion of seniority subject to merit and integrity."

The Collegium also resolves to recommend to appoint Justice S Vaidhyanathan as the Chief Justice of Meghalaya, reads the notification.

Justice S Vaidyanathan was appointed as a Judge of the Madras High Court on 25 October 2013. Before his elevation as a Judge of the High Court, he got enrolled at the Bar in 1986 and practised at the Madras High Court and various Tribunals. His area of practice was labour, service, criminal and company matters.

As regards his contribution to the judiciary by way of disposal of cases, during his tenure of 10 years as a judge of the High Court, he authored 1219 reported judgments, of which 692 were delivered during last 5 years. He has acquired considerable experience in dispensing justice in one of the largest High Courts in the country. While recommending his name, the Collegium has also taken into consideration the fact that the Madras High Court which is one of the largest High Courts in the country, is presently represented by only one Chief Justice among the Chief Justices of the High Courts.

The appointment of Justice S Vaidhyanathan as the Chief Justice was followed after the retirement of Justice Sanjib Banerjee from the Chief chair of Megahalya High Court in November 1.