Bhushan Gavai of Maharashtra becomes the 52nd Chief Justice of the country

First Buddhist, second Dalit Chief Justice

New Delhi – Justice Bhushan Ramakrishna Gavai, a native of Maharashtra, was appointed as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court on 14th May, following the retirement of the outgoing Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna. With his appointment, he became the second Dalit Chief Justice after Justice K.G. Balakrishnan, and the first Buddhist to hold the post. Balakrishnan was sworn in as the Chief Justice in 2007. Justice Gavai has become the 52nd Chief Justice of India and will hold the post till 23rd November, 2025, i.e. for 6 months and 9 days.

🇮🇳 Historic moment! Justice Bhushan Ramkrishna Gavai takes oath as the 52nd Chief Justice of India ⚖️

He becomes the 1st Buddhist 🪷 and 2nd Dalit ✊ to hold the nation's top judicial post.

President Droupadi Murmu administered the oath of office to Justice Gavai at the… pic.twitter.com/MYmZ6juBgR

— Sanatan Prabhat (@SanatanPrabhat) May 14, 2025

1. Justice Gavai was born on 24th November, 1960 in Amravati. His father, Ramakrishna Suryabhan Gavai, was one of the prominent leaders of the Ambedkar movement.

2. Chief Justice Bhushan Gavai started practicing law in 1985. After working in Mumbai for some time, he came to Nagpur. After initially working as an Additional Assistant Advocate in the Nagpur Bench of the High Court, he also worked as the Chief Government Advocate.

3. In the year 2003, he started working as an Additional Judge of the Bombay High Court, and in 2005, he became a permanent judge.

4. Later, on 24th May, 2019, he was appointed as a judge in the Supreme Court.