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{{Short description|52nd Chief Justice of India (from May to November 2025)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2025}}
{{Use Indian English|date=April 2025}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| birth_name = Bhushan Ramkrishna Gavai
| image = B R Gavai.jpg
| image_size = 200px
| caption = Former [[Chief Justice of India]] BR Gavai
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1960|11|24|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Amravati]], Maharashtra, India
| order = 52nd
| status =
| office = Chief Justice of India
| term_start = 14 May 2025
| term_end = 23 November 2025
| appointer = [[Droupadi Murmu]]
| predecessor = [[Sanjiv Khanna]]
| office1 = Judge of [[Supreme Court of India]]
| term_start1 = 24 May 2019
| term_end1 = 13 May 2025
| nominator1 = [[Ranjan Gogoi]]
| appointer1 = [[Ram Nath Kovind]]
| office2 = Judge of [[Bombay High Court]]
| term_start2 = 14 November 2003
| term_end2 = 23 May 2019
| nominator2 = [[Vishweshwar Nath Khare]]
| appointer2 = [[A. P. J. Abdul Kalam]]
| footnotes =
| alma_mater = [[Amravati University]], ([[Bachelor of Commerce|BCom]], [[Bachelor of Laws|LLB]])
| parents = [[R. S. Gavai]] (father)
| successor = [[Surya Kant]]
}}

'''Bhushan Ramkrishna Gavai''' (born 24 November 1960) is a retired Indian [[jurist]] who had served as the 52nd [[Chief Justice of India]] (CJI) from 14 May to 23 November 2025.<ref name="supreme court of india-2024" /> He is a former judge of the [[Bombay High Court]] and also served as the [[Chancellor (education)|chancellor]] of some [[National Law Universities|National Law Universities (NLUs)]]. He is the second-ever CJI to be from the [[Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes|Scheduled Castes]].<ref>{{cite news |date=10 May 2019 |title=SC Collegium recommends four judges for elevation to the apex court |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/sc-collegium-recommends-four-judges-for-elevation-to-the-apex-court-5720117/ |accessdate=7 June 2019 |newspaper=The Indian Express}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=10 May 2019 |title=Justice Bhushan Gavai of Bombay HC recommended for elevation as SC Judge |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/justice-bhushan-gavai-of-bombay-hc-recommended-for-elevation-as-sc-judge/articleshow/69250155.cms |accessdate=10 May 2019 |work=[[The Times of India]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=MNLU ACT, 2014 |url=https://bombayhighcourt.nic.in/libweb/acts/2014.06.pdf |access-date=11 September 2019 |publisher=Bombay High Court }}</ref> During his term as CJI, he also served as [[Ex officio member|''ex officio'']] patron-in-chief of the [[National Legal Services Authority]].<ref>{{cite web | last=Shrivastava | first=Amisha | title=Justice BR Gavai Appointed As Executive Chairman Of NALSA | website=Supreme Court News, Latest India Legal News, Supreme Court Updates, High Courts Updates, Judgments, Law Firms News, Law School News, Latest Legal News | date=13 November 2024 | url=https://www.livelaw.in/top-stories/justice-br-gavai-appointed-as-executive-chairman-of-nalsa-275150 | access-date=23 November 2024}}</ref>

== Early life and education ==

Gavai was born on 24 November 1960 in [[Amravati]], [[Maharashtra]], and studied at a primary municipal school in Amravati. He then studied at Chikitsak Samuha Shirolkar Madhyamik Shala and at Holy Name High School in [[Mumbai]].<ref>{{cite news |title="One Day You Will Be Chief Justice, But...": What Justice BR Gavai's Father Had Said |url=https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/one-day-you-will-be-chief-justice-but-what-justice-br-gavais-father-had-said-8407257 |work=NDTV |language=en}}</ref> After earning degrees in commerce and in law from [[Amravati University]], he joined the legal profession in 1985.<ref>{{cite news |title=Who is Justice BR Gavai? First Buddhist, second Dalit Chief Justice of India seasoned by crucial hearings & a political lineage |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/india/who-is-justice-br-gavai-first-buddhist-second-dalit-chief-justice-of-india-seasoned-by-top-cases-a-political-lineage/articleshow/121152942.cms?from=mdr |work=The Economic Times |date=14 May 2025}}</ref>

== Career ==
[[File:52nd Chief Justice of India BR Gavai.jpg|thumb|left|
President [[Droupadi Murmu]] administering the oath of office to Justice BR Gavai as the [[Chief Justice of India]] on 14 May 2025.]]

Gavai worked with [[Bar (law)|Bar]] under Raja S. Bhonsale, former advocate general and judge of the High Court. He practiced independently at [[Bombay High Court]] (HC) from 1987 to 1990. After 1990, he practiced mainly before the [[Bombay High Court#Nagpur bench|Nagpur Bench]] of the Bombay HC. He also practiced [[constitutional law]] and [[administrative law]].<ref name="supreme court of india-2024">{{cite web | title=Justice Bhushan Ramkrishna Gavai | publisher=Supreme Court of India | date=20 June 2024 | url=https://www.sci.gov.in/judge/justice-bhushan-ramkrishna-gavai/ | access-date=23 November 2024}}</ref>

Gavai was standing counsel for the [[Nagpur Municipal Corporation]], [[Amravati Municipal Corporation]], and [[Amravati University]]. He regularly represented as counsel various autonomous bodies and corporations like SICOM, DCVL, etc., and various municipal councils in the [[Vidarbha region]]. He was appointed as assistant government pleader and additional [[Prosecutor|public prosecutor]] in the Bombay HC's Nagpur Bench, from August 1992 to July 1993. Later, he was appointed as government pleader and public prosecutor for the Nagpur Bench on 17 January 2000. He was elevated as an additional judge of the High Court on 14 November 2003. On 12 November 2005, he became a permanent judge of the Bombay HC. After serving as a HC judge for 14 years, he was appointed as a judge of the [[Supreme Court of India]] on 24 May 2019, a position he held until 13 May 2025.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.scobserver.in/judges/bhushan-ramkrishna-gavai/|title=B.R. Gavai|website=Supreme Court Observer}}</ref>

On 14 May 2025, Justice Bhushan Ramkrishna Gavai was sworn in as the 52nd [[Chief Justice of India]] by [[President of India|President]] [[Droupadi Murmu]]. He was the first Chief Justice of India from the [[Marathi Buddhists|Buddhist community]]. He was also the second [[Dalit]] ([[Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes|Scheduled Caste]]) to hold the office, following Justice [[K. G. Balakrishnan]], who previously served as Chief Justice from 2007 to 2010.<ref name="hiwale-2025">{{Cite web |last=Hiwale |first=Sandesh |date=2025-05-13 |title=भारताला मिळाला पहिला बौद्ध सरन्यायाधीश – न्या. भूषण गवई यांचे प्रेरणादायी जीवनचरित्र |url=https://dhammabharat.com/cji-bhushan-gavai-biography-in-marathi/ |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=धम्म भारत |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref name="deccan herald">{{Cite web |title=CJI-Designate B R Gavai Asserts Constitution's Supremacy, Refuses Post-Retirement Political Assignments |url=https://www.deccanherald.com/india/constitution-is-supreme-asserts-cji-designate-b-r-gavai-says-no-to-post-retirement-assignment-3535609 |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=Deccan Herald |language=en}}</ref><ref name="rajagopal-2025">{{Cite news |last=Rajagopal |first=Krishnadas |date=2025-05-11 |title=No compromise if somebody hurts dignity of court, says Justice Gavai |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/if-somebody-hurts-the-dignity-of-the-court-there-is-no-compromise-cji-designate-gavai/article69564639.ece |access-date=2025-05-13 |work=The Hindu |language=en-IN |issn=0971-751X}}</ref><ref name="india today-2025">{{Cite web |date=2025-05-11 |title=Chief Justice-designate BR Gavai welcomes India-Pak's ceasefire amid tensions |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/india/law-news/story/chief-justice-of-india-designate-justice-gavai-welcome-india-pakistan-ceasefire-2723283-2025-05-11 |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=India Today |language=en}}</ref> As of January 2025, the Supreme Court of India had three sitting judges from the Scheduled Castes – Justice Gavai, Justice [[C. T. Ravikumar]], and Justice [[Prasanna B. Varale|Prasanna Varale]]. This marked the highest representation of the SC community in the history of the Supreme Court.<ref name="hiwale-2025" /><ref name="deccan herald" /><ref name="rajagopal-2025" /><ref name="india today-2025" /> Notably, both Justice B. R. Gavai and Justice [[Prasanna B. Varale]] belong to the [[Buddhism|Buddhist faith]], making it the first time in the Court's history that two Buddhist judges served simultaneously.<ref name="hiwale-2025" /><ref name="deccan herald" /><ref name="rajagopal-2025" /><ref name="india today-2025" /> Justice Gavai retired on 23 November 2025, and was succeeded by Justice [[Surya Kant (judge)|Surya Kant]].<ref name="supreme court of india-2024" />

== Notable judgements ==
Justice B.R. Gavai has authored and contributed to several landmark decisions of the Supreme Court of India. His judgments span a wide range of constitutional, criminal, and administrative matters.

=== Article 370 abrogation ===
Justice Gavai was a member of the five-judge Constitution Bench that upheld the abrogation of [[Article 370 of the Constitution of India|Article 370]], which granted special status to the erstwhile [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|state of Jammu and Kashmir]]. The Court ruled unanimously that the Presidential orders and the subsequent changes by Parliament were constitutionally valid. The Bench also directed that statehood be restored and that elections be conducted by September 2024.<ref>{{Cite web |author=Deeksha |date=2023-12-11 |title=Live Report - Supreme Court Judgment on Article 370 |url=https://www.scconline.com/blog/post/2023/12/11/live-report-supreme-court-judgment-on-article-370-legal-updates/ |access-date=2025-07-09 |website=SCC Times |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Electoral bonds scheme struck down ===
In ''[[Association for Democratic Reforms v. Union of India]]'', Justice Gavai was part of the Constitution Bench that unanimously struck down the [[Electoral bonds|Electoral Bonds]] Scheme, holding it to be violative of citizens' right to information under Article 19(1)(a) of [[Constitution of India|the Constitution]].<ref>{{Cite web |author=Apoorva |date=2024-02-15 |title=Supreme Court strikes down Electoral Bonds Scheme for being violative of right to information under Art. 19(1)(a) of Constitution |url=https://www.scconline.com/blog/post/2024/02/15/electoral-bonds-violative-right-to-information-art-191a-constitution-supreme-court-strikes-down-unconstitutional/ |access-date=2025-07-09 |website=SCC Times |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Bulldozer demolitions without due process ===
Justice Gavai co-authored a decision that condemned demolition of homes of accused persons by state authorities without following [[due process]]. The Court held that such actions violated the principles of the [[rule of law]] and separation of powers.<ref>{{Cite web |author=Deeksha |date=2024-11-13 |title=Bulldozer actions against properties for simply being an accused or convict, unconstitutional; Executive cannot be a Judge and demolish properties: SC |url=https://www.scconline.com/blog/post/2024/11/13/bulldozer-actions-demolishing-properties-merely-accused-convict-unconstitutional-supreme-court/ |access-date=2025-07-09 |website=SCC Times |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Sub-classification among scheduled castes ===
Justice Gavai was part of the seven-judge Constitution Bench in ''[[State of Punjab v. Davinder Singh]]'', which held that sub-classification among Scheduled Castes for more equitable affirmative action is permissible. He emphasized the need to identify and exclude the creamy layer within [[Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes|SC/ST]] categories to ensure substantive equality.<ref>{{Cite web |author=Deeksha |date=2024-08-02 |title='Indra Sawhney did not limit sub-classification to OBCs; Sub-classification of SC/STs permissible': A point wise breakdown of Majority Ruling in SC's 6:1 Verdict |url=https://www.scconline.com/blog/post/2024/08/02/supreme-court-61-verdict-holding-permissibility-of-sub-classification-of-sc-st/ |access-date=2025-07-09 |website=SCC Times |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Stay on conviction of Rahul Gandhi ===
In 2023, Justice Gavai was part of the Bench that stayed the conviction of [[Rahul Gandhi]] in a criminal defamation case. The Court noted that the conviction had far-reaching consequences, including disqualification from Parliament.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-08-04 |title=Modi Surname Defamation Case {{!}} Supreme Court stays Rahul Gandhi's conviction |url=https://www.scconline.com/blog/post/2023/08/04/sc-stays-rahul-gandhis-conviction-in-modi-surname-defamation-case-legal-news/ |access-date=2025-07-09 |website=SCC Times |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Presidential reference ===
The Supreme Court, in a unanimous advisory opinion on Presidential Reference No. 1 of 2025, held that courts cannot impose timelines on the [[President of India|President]] or Governors to act on bills, rejected the idea of deemed assent, and concluded that gubernatorial and presidential actions under Articles 200 and 201 are generally non-justiciable before a bill becomes law, subject to a narrow exception for prolonged constitutional inaction inviting limited directions to act.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kumar |first=Parmod |date=2025-11-20 |title=Presidential Reference on Governor's Timelines: Supreme Court to Deliver Advisory Opinion today |url=https://theleaflet.in/leaflet-reports/presidential-reference-on-governors-timelines-supreme-court-to-deliver-advisory-opinion-today |access-date=2025-11-23 |website=The Leaflet |language=en}}</ref>

== Personal life ==
Bhushan Ramkrishna Gavai was born to [[R. S. Gavai|Ramkrishna Suryabhan Gavai]] and Kamala on 24 November 1960. His father led the [[Republican Party of India (Gavai)]] faction and had been an [[Member of Parliament (India)|M.P.]] and [[Governor (India)|Governor]]. His daughter Karishma Gavai works as an assistant professor in [[Maharashtra National Law University, Nagpur|National Law University, Nagpur]]. His brother [[Rajendra Gavai]] is also a politician. His family is inspired by [[B. R. Ambedkar]] and follows [[Buddhism]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/former-kerala-bihar-governor-r-s-gavai-passes-away/|title=R S Gavai, veteran Ambedkarite leader, dies at 86|date=26 July 2015|website=The Indian Express|language=en-IN|access-date=4 July 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=petWCgAAQBAJ&q=r+s+gavai+religion&pg=PT170|title=Living with Religious Diversity|last1=Sikka|first1=Sonia|last2=Puri|first2=Bindu|last3=Beaman|first3=Lori G.|author3-link=Lori G. Beaman|date=11 August 2015|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-317-37098-7|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=22 May 2019|title=Justice Gavai in line to become second Dalit CJI as govt clears names of four judges for Supreme Court|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/justice-gavai-to-be-second-dalit-cji-govt-clears-names-of-four-judges-for-supreme-court-5742623/|access-date=14 June 2020|website=The Indian Express|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.loksatta.com/sampadkiya/features/who-is-heir-of-babasaheb-ambedkar-gavai-or-ambedkar-mrj-95-4708849/|title=बाबासाहेबांचे वारसदार कोण? आंबेडकर की गवई?|date=14 November 2024}}</ref>

== Controversies ==
In September 2025, CJI Gavai created controversy and received severe criticism on social media for his remarks<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sharma |first=Sanjay |date=2025-09-17 |title=Go ask deity: Chief Justice Gavai's remark on plea to restore Vishnu idol stirs row |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/india/law-news/story/supreme-court-cji-gavai-pray-lord-vishnu-khajuraho-idol-remark-controversy-impeachment-2788939-2025-09-17 |access-date=2025-11-04 |website=India Today |language=en}}</ref> in a [[Public interest litigation in India|public interest litigation]] (PIL) case concerning the restoration of an idol of the [[Hinduism|Hindu]] god [[Vishnu]] damaged during the [[Mughal Empire|Mughal]] invasions at a temple in the [[Khajuraho Group of Monuments|Khajuraho complex]] in [[Madhya Pradesh]]. Gavai mocked the petition by calling it a "Publicity Interest Litigation". He told the petitioner, "Go and ask the [[deity]] himself to do something. If you say that you are a staunch devotee of Lord Vishnu, then pray and meditate." However, CJI Gavai later clarified that he respects all religions.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sharma |first=Sanjay |date=2025-09-17 |title=Go ask deity: Chief Justice Gavai's remark on plea to restore Vishnu idol stirs row |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/india/law-news/story/supreme-court-cji-gavai-pray-lord-vishnu-khajuraho-idol-remark-controversy-impeachment-2788939-2025-09-17 |access-date=2025-09-18 |website=India Today |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title='I respect all religions', CJI Gavai on social media posts on remarks over reconstruction of Lord Vishnu idol |url=https://www.deccanherald.com/india/i-respect-all-religions-cji-gavai-on-social-media-posts-on-remarks-over-reconstruction-of-lord-vishnu-idol-3734221 |access-date=2025-09-18 |website=Deccan Herald |language=en}}</ref>

On 6 October 2025, advocate Rakesh Kishore [[Chief Justice of India shoe-throwing incident|attempted to attack Gavai with a shoe]], outraged over his remarks on Vishnu and "insult to [[Sanātana Dharma|Sanatana Dharma]]". While being made to leave the court, Kishore made the statement, "''Sanatan Dharam Ka Apman, Nahi Sahega Hindustan''" (The insult of Hinduism must not be tolerated at all in India).<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-10-06 |title=Advocate throws shoe at Chief Justice BR Gavai during court proceedings |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/advocate-throws-shoe-chief-justice-india-b-r-gavai-court-proceedings-10290523/ |access-date=2025-10-06 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Shoe thrown at India's top judge in religious row |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c80g4d5epm8o |website=BBC |access-date=8 October 2025 |date=7 October 2025}}</ref>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
*[https://bombayhighcourt.nic.in/jshowpuisne.php?auth=amdldGlkPTQwNSZwYWdlbm89NDE= JUSTICE Bhushan Ramkrishna Gavai Official Profile from Bombay High court website]
*[https://www.sci.gov.in/judge/justice-bhushan-ramkrishna-gavai/ JUSTICE Bhushan Ramkrishna Gavai Official Profile from Supreme court website]

{{Chief justices of India}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gavai, B. R.}}
[[Category:1960 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Place of birth missing (living people)]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian judges]]
[[Category:21st-century Indian judges]]
[[Category:Dalit people]]
[[Category:Judges of the Bombay High Court]]
[[Category:Navayana Buddhists]]
[[Category:Justices of the Supreme Court of India]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian Buddhists]]
[[Category:21st-century Indian Buddhists]]
[[Category:People from Amravati]]
[[Category:Chief justices of India]]

B. R. Gavai - Revision history

हिन्दू at 07:46, 23 April 2026