CJI D.Y. Chandrachud Biography: Family, Education, Landmark Judgements and More

CJI DY Chandrachud: India’s 50th and current Chief Justice Dhananjaya Yeshwant Chandrachud is working towards establishing the trust of the Indian masses into the legal system, law and order of the country. Earning a headline for his direct addressals to cases concerning fundamental rights and safety, CJI Chandrachud is emerging as a pivotal name in the juridical framework at present. Learn about his family, education qualification and more in his biography. 

CJI DY Chandrachud Biography 

An Indian jurist, and the sitting judge at the Supreme Court of India. He was born on 11 November 1959 to Yeshwant Vishnu Chandrachud, 16th and the longest serving CJI of India and Prabha, a classical musician who has sung for the All India Radio. 

CJI DY Chandrachud Education 

His schooling is credited to  Cathedral and John Connon School in Mumbai, and St. Columba's School, Delhi. He is a LL.B. graduate of St. Stephen’s College from the University of Delhi. In 1983 he went to Harvard University for his Masters in Law, where he also earned the Doctor of Juridical Sciences in 1986.  

CJI DY Chandrachud’s Career Timeline 

• His first job was as a junior advocate during his graduation years.
• Post his Masters from Havard, he worked with the Sullivan and Cromwell law firm. 
• In June 1998, he was designated as a senior advocate at the Bombay High Court and also appointed as the  Additional Solicitor General of India. 
• On 29 March 2000, he became the judge at the Bombay High Court. He also served as the director of the Maharashtra Judicial Academy during this time  
• On 31 October 2013, he was appointed as the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court. 
• On 17 October 2022, he was nominated as CJI designate until 9 November 2022, when he succeeded chief justice Uday Umesh Lalit as the 50th CJI. 

CJI DY Chandrachud’s Landmark Judgements 

Some of the most notable judgements of CJI DY Chandrachud include: 

Sabarimala Temple case (2018): The temple barred women of menstruating age i.e. 10 to 50 years from entering. CJI Chandrachud declared the practice unconstitutional as it violated many articles of the Indian constitution. 

Decriminalization of Section 377(2018): The Constitution bench comprising Hon’ble Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Hon’ble Justice S. Ravindra Bhat, Hon’ble Justice P.S. Narasimha, Hon’ble Justice Hima Kohli, and Hon’ble Justice Sanjay Kishan Kau legalised same sex marriage in India calling it a “anachronistic colonial law”. 

Ram Janmabhoomi Verdict (2019): The five-judge bench of Supreme Court of India including Chief Justice Chandrachud gave a verdict in favor of the construction of Ram Mandir at the contentious site of Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid land dispute.