Centre notifies transfer of Justice Arindam Sinha from Orissa to Allahabad High Court

The Central government on Friday notified the transfer of Justice Arindam Sinha from the Orissa High Court to the Allahabad High Court..The Supreme Court Collegium had recommended Justice Sinha's transfer to the Allahabad High Court during meetings held on March 6 and March 20.Pursuant to that, the government issued a notification today, concurring with the Collegium's proposal. "In exercise of the power conferred by clause (1) of Article 222 of the Constitution of India, the President, after consultation with the Chief Justice of India, is pleased to transfer Shri Justice Arindam Sinha, Judge, Orissa High Court, to be a Judge of Allahabad High Court and to direct him to assume charge of his office in the Allahabad High Court," the notification said..Born on September 22, 1965, Justice Sinha enrolled as an advocate on March 11, 1991 and practiced for 22 years, primarily before the Calcutta High Court. He was elevated as an additional judge of the Calcutta High Court on October 30, 2013, and later appointed as a permanent judge on March 14, 2016. On October 8, 2021, he was sworn in as a judge of the Orissa High Court..On March 20, the Collegium had also decided to recommend the transfer of Justice Yashwant Varma from the Delhi High Court to the Allahabad High Court.This proposal has also been cleared today by the Central government. The development came amid strong opposition by the Allahabad Bar, given the recent allegations of corruption levelled against the judge after a large amount of cash was found at his Delhi residence by firefighters.The government further cleared a Collegium recommendation to transfer Delhi High Court judge Justice Chandra Dhari Singh to Allahabad High Court as well. .With today's notifications, three judges are set to join the Allahabad High Court, which has been grappling with judicial vacancies. Notably, a plea was recently moved before the Allahabad High Court seeking directions for urgent and time-bound filling of judicial vacancies at the High Court where more than 50 percent of sanctioned strength of 160 judges were vacant."More than 50% of the judicial positions remain vacant, crippling its capacity to hear and adjudicate cases efficiently: Against a sanctioned strength of 160 judges, only 79 are in position, leaving more than 50% of the seats vacant, i.e., 81 vacancies," the plea had stated..[Read Notification].Follow Bar and Bench channel on WhatsAppDownload the Bar and Bench Mobile app for instant access to the latest legal news.