In farewell speech, HC CJ highlights workload issues
Times of India | 16 September 2025CJ Sivagnanam would be succeeded by Justice Soumen Sen as the acting chief justice, the govt said in a notification. The SC collegium has already recommended Justice Sen to head the Meghalaya HC as its chief justice. In case Justice Sen is appointed by the Centre to the Meghalaya HC, Justice Sujoy Paul will be the second senior-most at Calcutta High Court.
The Calcutta HC now has 24 vacancies, the fourth highest among the high courts in the country; 48 judges now handle a backlog of over 2 lakh cases.
In his farewell address, outgoing CJ Sivagnanam said, "With the help of my fellow judges, 17 names have been recommended. Even if 10 come through, that will be a good addition for the high court." The SC collegium vets these recommendations and proposes them to the govt to make final appointments. "The SC has made timelines. So each judge has three to four determinations. I have not even spared the judges who are in the division bench, so whenever they get time to sit single, they take up matters.
Most of them leave their chambers by 8.30 pm. If that strength is increased, Calcutta HC will be greatly benefited."
Declining a comment on his non-elevation to the SC, Sivagnanam said, "This is not the time to make an autopsy of all that… no regrets." He went on to talk about the pressure he put his judges through by assigning three to four determinations and how he felt dejected assigning second appeals, which were 25-30 years old.
In his speech bidding farewell to the Calcutta HC, the outgoing CJ talked about his time with other chief justices. But one particular matter struck a chord with him, he said. "When I was 42, my then CJ A P Shah, who later became the CJ of Delhi HC and also did not make it to the SC, called me to his chamber and said he would be recommending my name. I was taken aback. The matter went to SC and they thought I was too young and it was said that it would be exceptional of exceptional cases that this fellow could be brought in.
So let him wait. They put it on hold. Then I came to Calcutta HC," he said.
Outgoing CJ Sivagnanam also spoke about the expansion of live hearings on YouTube and ensuring live-streaming in almost all courts. "All our court proceedings are live-streamed and we have got a silver button from YouTube as well. We are in the process of getting a platinum or gold button or whatever it is. This is possible because of cooperation by the Bar," he said.
