Punjab Objects to Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra’s Appointment as High Court Chief Justice
The Punjab government has strongly objected to the appointment of Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra as the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, accusing the Centre of moving ahead without waiting for the state government’s views. The Punjab Cabinet passed a resolution on Sunday demanding that the appointment and oath ceremony be kept on hold until the state’s position is properly considered.
The dispute centres on the procedure followed for the appointment. The Punjab government cited the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP), arguing that the views of the concerned state government should be obtained after the Supreme Court Collegium recommends a Chief Justice. Punjab alleged that the Centre notified Justice Mishra’s appointment before receiving its response.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann described the move as an interference with the state’s constitutional rights and federal structure. The state also urged President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria not to proceed with the oath until its concerns were addressed.
The Centre, however, has rejected Punjab’s contention. Additional Solicitor General Satya Pal Jain said the state had been given sufficient time to communicate its views. According to the Centre’s account, Punjab and Haryana were informed about the proposed appointment on August 10, while Haryana submitted its views shortly afterwards; Punjab did not submit its opinion within that period.
Justice Mishra’s appointment had been recommended by the Supreme Court Collegium on August 6, 2026. The Centre formally notified the appointment on September 5, nearly a month after the Collegium’s recommendation. Justice Mishra had already been serving as Acting Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court since June.
Despite Punjab’s objection, Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra was sworn in as the 37th Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court on September 7. Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria administered the oath at Lok Bhawan in Chandigarh.
The Punjab government’s representatives were notably absent from the oath ceremony. The empty seats were seen as a symbolic expression of the state government’s continuing opposition to the manner in which the appointment was processed.
The controversy has therefore moved beyond the appointment itself and into a wider debate over the respective roles of the Supreme Court Collegium, the Union government and state governments in judicial appointments. At the centre of the dispute is whether the state’s consultation under the MoP was adequately completed before the appointment was notified.
