Punjab Government Challenges Appointment of New High Court Chief Justice

On the evening of September 6, 2026, the Punjab cabinet passed a resolution that put a sudden brake on the appointment of Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra as the new Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The state argued that the Centre had moved ahead without first hearing Punjab’s own view – a step the cabinet says sidesteps established constitutional practice.

Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann took the matter a notch higher, penning separate letters to President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In both missives, he asked the central government to hold off on administering the oath slated for September 7, until the state’s concerns are “adequately addressed”.

According to the official statement released after the cabinet meeting, Punjab’s objection is rooted in the belief that the appointment process was rushed, leaving little room for the state to submit its observations. While the Supreme Court collegium had, on August 6, recommended Mishra’s name along with seven other judges for chief‑justice slots across the country, Punjab insists that the usual consultative step was effectively ignored.

Not everyone shares Punjab’s frustration. Additional Solicitor General Satya Pal Jain, speaking for the Union, called the state’s move “most unfortunate and totally uncalled for”. He reminded that all other state governments had sent their feedback within a week of the collegium’s recommendation, and warned that dragging the process could politicise a fundamentally non‑political judicial appointment.

The controversy arrives at a delicate time for the Indian judiciary, which is already juggling an interim report from a judicial‑infrastructure panel and a backlog of pending appointments. As the deadline for Mishra’s oath approaches, the standoff raises a broader question: how much weight should a state’s view carry when the Supreme Court’s collegium has already vetted a candidate?

For now, the Centre has not publicly indicated whether it will heed Punjab’s demand. The oath ceremony, originally set for Monday, remains in limbo, leaving the legal community to watch closely how this constitutional tussle unfolds.