Ahmedabad, Sep 14 (IANS): Justice Manash Ranjan Pathak took oath as a judge of the Gujarat High Court on Monday, following his transfer from the Orissa High Court, with Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal administering the oath of office at a ceremony in Ahmedabad.
The oath-taking ceremony was held at the Gujarat High Court, marking Justice Pathak’s assumption of charge as a judge of the court.
Justice Pathak was transferred to the Gujarat High Court from the Orissa High Court following an order issued by President Droupadi Murmu.
The transfer had earlier been recommended by the Supreme Court Collegium. Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal administered the oath to Justice Pathak during the ceremony.
The event was attended by judges of the Gujarat High Court, senior members of the legal profession, including Advocate General Kamal Trivedi, and officers of the High Court.
Justice Pathak was initially appointed as a judge in 2013. The Gujarat High Court’s records give his date of initial appointment as May 22, 2013. Before his initial appointment as an Additional judge, he was enrolled as an advocate with the Bar Council of Assam, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Manipur, Tripura, Mizoram, and Arunachal Pradesh on September 12, 1990.
His transfer from the Orissa High Court to Gujarat is part of the recent movement of judges between High Courts.
The Supreme Court Collegium, at its meeting on August 6, recommended the transfer of two judges from the Orissa High Court.
Justice Manash Ranjan Pathak, whose parent High Court is the Gauhati High Court, was recommended for transfer to the Gujarat High Court, while Justice Krushna Ram Mohapatra was recommended for transfer to the Chhattisgarh High Court.
The Collegium’s recommendations were subsequently followed by the respective transfer process.
With the oath-taking ceremony, Justice Pathak has formally joined the Gujarat High Court and assumed his judicial responsibilities in the state.
The ceremony was attended by members of the Bench and Bar, along with various court officials.
