Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari new Chief Justice of Madras High Court

CHENNAI: Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari has taken oath as the 55th Chief Justice of the Madras High Court on Friday.Following the retirement of former Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava, the President of India had issued an order appointing Justice Dharmadhikari, who was serving as a judge of the Kerala High Court, as the new Chief Justice of the Madras High Court.

The oath of office was administered by Governor RN Ravi at a ceremony held at the Lok Bhavan in Chennai.

Justice Dharmadhikari hails from Raipur in Chhattisgarh. He obtained his law degree from Nagpur University in Maharashtra and began his legal practice in 1992 at the Madhya Pradesh High Court. From 2000-2015, he served as counsel representing the I-T Department, banks, and various Central Government departments. In 2018, he was appointed as a Judge of the Madhya Pradesh High Court.

In April 2025, he was transferred to the Kerala High Court, and he has now assumed charge as the Chief Justice of the Madras High Court.

Representing the State government, Minister S Ragupathy, Deputy Speaker K Pitchandi, Advocate General PS Raman, State Public Prosecutor Hasan Mohamed Jinnah, Additional Solicitor General ARL Sundaresan, former Ministers D Jayakumar and CV Shanmugam, along with Central and State government officials, Chief Secretary N Muruganandam, Director General of Police (in-charge) G Venkatraman, Greater Chennai Commissioner of Police A Arun, Bar leaders and others participated.

During a formal reception held in his honour, Chief Justice Dharmadhikari said, “Although it’s often said that judges and advocates are the two wheels of a chariot, I believe advocates are partners in the justice delivery system. They should avoid seeking unnecessary adjournments in cases and contribute to reducing the backlog of pending cases. A greater use of technology should be made to modernise the judicial system. Young advocates should be empowered and given greater opportunities.”