Justice SA Dharmadhikari appointed Chief Justice of Madras High Court

Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari was on Thursday appointed the chief justice of the Madras High Court. He was till now a judge of the Kerala High Court. His name was recommended to the post by the Supreme Court Collegium last month. He replaces Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava, who demitted office Thursday evening upon attaining the age of 62 years.

His parent High Court is the Madhya Pradesh High Court. Born on July 8, 1966, in Raipur, Justice Dharmadhikari began his legal career in 1992. He practised before the Madhya Pradesh High Court for over two decades, handling civil, criminal and constitutional matters.

During his time at the Bar, he served as Standing Counsel for the Union of India from 2000 to 2015. He also represented several Government bodies and public sector institutions, including the Income Tax Department, the Reserve Bank of India and the Central Excise Department as Senior Standing Counsel.

Justice Dharmadhikari was appointed as an additional judge of the Madhya Pradesh High Court on April 7, 2016, and was confirmed as a permanent judge on March 17, 2018. He was transferred to the Kerala High Court on April 23, 2025, before being elevated as Chief Justice of the Madras High Court.