Breaking: Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra Sworn In as Chief Justice of Punjab & Haryana High Court; CM Mann Skips Ceremony
Kuljinder Sra / Babushahi Network
Chandigarh, September 7, 2026: Justice Mr Ashwani Kumar Mishra was on Monday sworn in as the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, amid the Punjab Government’s opposition to his appointment.
Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria administered the oath of office to Justice Mishra at a ceremony held at Punjab Lok Bhawan in Chandigarh.
In a significant departure from convention, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann skipped the swearing-in ceremony, while Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini attended the event. Traditionally, the Chief Ministers of both Punjab and Haryana attend the oath-taking ceremony of the Chief Justice of the common High Court.
Mann’s absence assumes significance as the Punjab Cabinet had only a day earlier passed a resolution opposing the appointment of Justice Mishra and demanded that both his appointment and administration of oath be kept on hold until the state government’s views were obtained and considered.
The Punjab Government has maintained that the Centre notified the appointment without awaiting the state’s views under the Memorandum of Procedure, while Additional Solicitor General Satya Pal Jain has rejected the charge, asserting that the prescribed procedure was followed and that the state government had no veto over the appointment.
With Justice Mishra taking charge as Chief Justice despite the Punjab Government’s objection, the development is likely to further sharpen the ongoing Centre-Punjab differences over the appointment.
