Article 124(1) provides for a Supreme Court (SC) of India consisting of CJI and not more than 33 other Judges.
About CJI
- Appointment: Article 124 (2) provides for the appointment of CJI by the President.
- Appointment of CJI follows the dual convention of consultation with the outgoing CJI and appointing the seniormost judge of the SC as CJI.
- As per the Memorandum of Procedure, the Union Law Minister first seeks recommendation of outgoing CJI, forwards it to the PM who then advises the President.
- Tenure: Till the age of 65 years.
- Oath: Administered by the President.
- First CJI: Harilal J. Kania.
- Scrutiny: Office of CJI falls under the Right to Information Act (RTI), 2005.
Key Roles and Duties of CJI
- Administrative Appointments: Appoints the Officers and Servants of the SC as per Article 146.
- Statutory Appointments: CJI as acts as the chairperson of the Search-cum-Selection-Committee for appointing Members of statutory authorities like National Company Law Appellate Tribunal, etc.
- Master of Roster: It is the exclusive power of the CJI laid down in the Handbook of Practice and Procedure and Office Procedure 2017, dealing with the allocation of cases to different benches.
- Others: Administers oath to the President; appoints ad hoc judges; requests retired judges to act as judges; decides on the seat of the SC, etc.
