Jammu, April 16 (IANS): Justice Arun Palli was on Wednesday sworn in as the Chief Justice of J&K & Ladakh High Court.

Lt Governor Manoj Sinha administered the oath at the swearing-in function held at the Convention Centre, in the presence of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, Assembly Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather, judges of the high court, the Chief Secretary, senior officers and other dignitaries.

Chief Justice Tashi Rabstan had retired on April 10 and Justice Sanjeev Kumar was sworn in as the action Chief Justice.

“At a ceremony held today in the Convention Centre, Shri Justice Arun Palli was sworn in as the Chief Justice of the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh. He made and subscribed to the oath of office before the Lieutenant Governor, UT of J&K, Shri Manoj Sinha,” an official statement said.

Born on September 18, 1964, Justice Palli graduated in commerce and completed his law degree from the Panjab University in 1988.

His father, Prem Kishan Palli, was a senior advocate and subsequently elevated as a judge of the Himachal Pradesh High Court, from where he retired in 1998.

Justice Palli began his legal practice at the Punjab and Haryana High Court, and in 2004, he was appointed the Additional Advocate General for Punjab.

He held the position for three years until March 2007. He was designated as a senior advocate later the same year.

He was elevated as a judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court on December 28, 2013.

He was appointed the Executive Chairman of Haryana State Legal Service Authority on May 31, 2023.

He was also nominated as a Member of the Governing Body of the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) on October 31, 2023, for a tenure of two years.

The J&K High Court has a sanctioned strength of 17 judges, 13 of whom are permanent judges, while the other four are additional judges.