New Delhi: Responding to the allegations levelled by Supreme Court Justice Sandeep Mehta against Rajasthan HC Acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Prakash, Chief Justice of India Surya Kant on Wednesday said the allegations against a sitting judge must be dealt with “strictly through established institutional mechanisms”.
CJI Kant is on a four-day visit to Germany and the UK. According to a report by The Print, CJI has issued a statement saying the allegations against the Rajasthan HC ACJ cannot by itself be treated as a finding against the judge. He stated that the ACJ must be given a fair opportunity to give a response.
Justice Mehta has sought the immediate removal of Rajasthan High Court acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma, alleging misuse of administrative powers, preferential treatment of “rich and influential” litigants, corruption, nepotism and favouritism in the high court.
In three letters addressed to Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Mehta raised several concerns over the functioning of the Rajasthan High Court under Justice Sharma. The letters, accessed by Hindustan Times, alleged that Sharma had been selectively moving cases to his own bench by using his powers as master of the roster.
Justice Mehta also said he had received several complaints regarding Sharma’s judicial functioning, which, according to him, “prima facie, raise doubts on his integrity”.
Among the concerns raised by Justice Mehta were allegations of corruption, nepotism and favouritism in the high court, as well as the selective transfer of cases to the acting chief justice’s bench. He further alleged that Sharma’s roster powers had been misused and that “rich and influential” litigants had received preferential treatment.
Justice Mehta also alleged that judges had been threatened with transfers if they did not cooperate. He referred to allegations of “vindictive” conduct against Justice Sharma by fellow judges and claimed that the institution had adopted a “seriously skewed” approach towards the Jodhpur Bench.
Justice Mehta also criticised the administration of the high court in connection with a three-day international conference held in Jaipur from July 31 to August 2.
According to his letter, nearly all judges of the high court had been nominated to attend the conference, leaving the Jodhpur principal seat without a single functional court for two days.
Justice Sharma was appointed as a judge of the Rajasthan High Court in November 2016. He was transferred to the Patna High Court in January 2022. In March 2023, the Supreme Court Collegium did not accept his request for repatriation to Rajasthan on health grounds and instead transferred him to the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
The Collegium subsequently recommended his repatriation to Rajasthan in May 2025. He has since been serving as the acting Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court.
In his letters, Justice Mehta urged the CJI to appoint a Chief Justice from another state and transfer Justice Sharma out of Rajasthan. He said that continued inaction against the acting Chief Justice would be “against the interest of the institution”.