President Ram Nath Kovind has appointed Justice Ranjan Gogoi as the next Chief Justice of India (CJI). The second senior most judge in the Supreme Court, Justice Gogoi will take charge as the next CJI on October 3.

Chief Justice Dipak Misra endorsed Justice Gogoi's name as his successor, keeping with the tradition of naming the judge next in seniority as the chief justice, sources said.

According to sources,Justice Gogoi will be the Chief Justice till November 17, next year.

Chief Justice Dipak Misra recommended Ranjan Gogoi's name as his successor after the Law Ministry asked Misra for a name to take his place after his retirement.

In January, Justice Ranjan Gogoi was among the four judges who criticised Chief Justice Misra in a rare press conference and accused him of misusing his role of assigning cases as the Supreme Court's 'Master of the Roster'. He is currently hearing the Assam National Register of Citizens or NRC issue.

The soft spoken Justice Gogoi was elevated to the Supreme Court in 2012.

(Featured image:Free Press Kashmir)