The Delhi High Court collegium has made a rare alteration to its judgeship recommendations by withdrawing the name of a lawyer after the proposal had already been formally forwarded to the Supreme Court collegium, the Union government and the Delhi government. The move has drawn attention within legal circles, as such changes are uncommon once the consultative process has begun.
The decision comes as part of the first major exercise to recommend lawyers for elevation to the Delhi High Court under Chief Justice D.K. Upadhyaya. The court had not seen a significant batch of recommendations from the Bar in more than a year.
Recommendation revised after initial approval
According to the Hindustan Times, the three-member collegium comprising Chief Justice Upadhyaya, Justice V. Kameswar Rao and Justice Nitin W. Sambre had initially cleared seven names for appointment as judges of the high court.
The original list included advocates Sameer Vashist, Sandeep Mahapatra, Sandeep Sharma, Ravi Prakash, Amit Prasad, Kadambri Singh and Prachi Mishra. These names were subsequently forwarded to the constitutional authorities concerned for further consideration.
However, the collegium later issued a fresh communication withdrawing Prachi Mishra's recommendation. At the same time, it added the names of senior advocate Aseem Chawla and advocate Geetanjali Malviya Ojha, expanding the list to eight candidates.
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Unusual step in judicial appointment process
According to the Hindustan Times, legal observers note that once recommendations are formally sent for consultation, withdrawal of an individual's name is relatively rare. In most instances, proposals move forward as a collective resolution of the collegium, with significant reconsiderations often requiring a fresh review of the entire exercise.
What makes the latest development notable is that the collegium chose to retain the remaining names while modifying the list midway through the process.
The reasons behind the withdrawal of Mishra's name have not been publicly disclosed.
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Profiles of recommended candidates
According to the Hindustan Times, the recommendations represent the first appointment exercise undertaken by Chief Justice Upadhyaya since his transfer from the Bombay High Court. The last lawyer elevated from the Bar to the Delhi High Court was Justice Tejas Karia in February 2025.
Among those recommended, Amit Prasad is known for serving as the special public prosecutor in the Delhi riots larger conspiracy case. Senior advocates Kadambri Singh and Ravi Prakash are recognised for their civil law practice, while Sandeep Sharma has considerable experience in arbitration matters. Sameer Vashist and Sandeep Mahapatra have served as standing counsel for the Delhi and central governments respectively.
New entrant Aseem Chawla is a senior advocate with expertise in taxation, commercial and regulatory law, while Geetanjali Malviya Ojha has an established civil practice.
The recommendations will now be scrutinised by the Supreme Court collegium led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant after Intelligence Bureau reports are received. The names will then move to the Union government for final approval. The Delhi High Court is currently functioning with 44 judges against a sanctioned strength of 60.
