PMO gets file for elevation of Justice T S Thakur as CJI

The warrant of appointment of Justice T S Thakur as the next Chief Justice of India is set to be issued soon with Law Ministry today forwarding the file of his appointment to the Prime Minister's Office.

Once signed by the Prime Minister, the file will be sent to Rashtrapati Bhavan for the President to put his stamp on the warrant of appointment of Thakur as the 43rd CJI.

Sources in the know said Gowda forwarded the recommendation of CJI H L Dattu naming Justice Thakur as his successor to the PMO this morning.

Justice B D Ahmed, a judge of the Delhi High Court and executive chairman of Delhi state legal services authority, today said Justice Thakur would soon be "wearing a new hat".

He said Law Minister D V Sadananda Gowda informed Justice Thakur that his file has been sent to the PMO.

Justice Ahmed, Gowda, Justice Thakur and Chief Justice of Delhi High Court G Rohini along with Supreme Court judge Justice A R Dave were sharing stage here at a programme to launch seven legal service schemes of the National Legal Services Authority.

Justice Thakur, the senior-most judge of the apex court, will take over as the CJI after Justice Dattu retires on December 2.

His name was recommended to the government by Justice Dattu on Monday as per the laid down procedure.

63-year-old Justice Thakur headed the bench which had delivered the verdict in the IPL spot-fixing and betting scandal in January this year.

The probe in the Saradha chit fund scam case is also being monitored by a Supreme Court bench headed by him. He is also hearing the multi-crore rupee NRHM scam, in which ex-UP minister Babu Singh Kushwaha is an accused besides other politicians and bureaucrat.