The appointment of advocate Manjusha Ajay Deshpande as an additional judge of the Bombay High Court has been cleared by the Central government today.
Minister of State for Law and Justice Arjun Meghwal made an announcement to this effect by via his Twitter handle.
As per the announcement ,Deshpande would hold office for a period of two years.
The Supreme Court Collegium headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud on July 18, 2023,had recommended her appointment as a judge of the Bombay High Court, after noting that Deshpande is a competent lawyer well versed in several branches of law, particularly in constitutional and service matters.
The Collegium had observed that the elevation of Deshpande would also add to the representation of women in the High Court bench, especially the women lawyers practicing before the Aurangabad bench.
The recommendation was made by the Bombay High Court Collegium on September 26, 2022.
The Collegium on May 2, 2023,deferred its decision on the recommendation and decided to seek a report from the then Acting Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court in view of certain issues flagged by the Union Department of Justice.
After discussing the matter with his colleagues at the Aurangabad Bench, the then Acting Chief Justice of the High Court,submitted a report on May 10, 2022.
The Collegium then considered the government’s inputs in conjunction with the report of the then High Court Acting Chief Justice.
After the Collegium endorsed of her elevation, the Central government has now cleared Deshpande’s name for appointment as an additional High Court judge.