ILNS: The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a very special occasion of the Supreme Court to also go online. Chief Justice Sharad Arvind Bobde, the 47th Chief Justice of India, will lay down office at 5 pm on Friday, paving the way for Justice N.V. Ramana to take charge as the 48th Chief Justice of India the day after.
This time, the special farewell occasion, generally attended by all legal luminaries, the bar and the bench of the court, will now be held through a video conference. Justice Bobde had recommended Justice Ramana as the next CJI and the President of India had put his seal and signature on this on April 6.
It is also a possibility that the lawyers’ welcome to the CJI’s chair, of Justice Ramana, will also be an online affair. The welcome, of course, will happen next week, after the formal oath-taking ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
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The oath-taking ceremony will be most likely held, but with a limited attendance, as COVID-19 protocols are being strictly adhered to with only tested negative legal luminaries are likely to attend the event.