Bhupinder Nath Kirpal (B. N. Kirpal) (born 8 November 1937) was the 31st

Chief Justice of India The chief justice of India (IAST: ) is the chief judge of the Supreme Court of India as well as the highest-ranking officer of the Indian Judiciary. The Constitution of India grants power to the president of India to appoint, in consultation w ...

, serving from 6 May 2002 until his retirement on 7 November 2002. He is an alumnus of The Modern School, New Delhi and St Stephens College, Delhi University. A top cricketer, he represented both his school and college. He began his legal career as an advocate in 1962 and was appointed a Judge of

Delhi High Court The High Court of Delhi (IAST: ''dillī uchcha nyāyālaya'') was established on 31 October 1966, through the ''Delhi High Court Act, 1966'', with four judges, Chief Justice K. S. Hegde, Justice I. D. Dua, Justice H. R. Khanna and Justice S. ...

in November 1979. In December 1993, he was appointed Chief Justice of the

Gujarat High Court The Gujarat High Court is the High Court of the state of Gujarat. It was established on 1 May 1960 under the ''Bombay Re-organisation Act, 1960'' after the state of Gujarat split from Bombay State. The seat of the court is Ahmedabad. The prese ...

. In September 1995, he was appointed Judge of the Supreme Court of India and became Chief Justice of India in May 2002. After retirement as the Chief Justice of India, he was appointed the 1st Chairman of the National Forest Commission on 21 February 2003.

Personal life

He was born in Lahore but shifted to Delhi after partition. He is married to Aruna Kirpal (née Sachdev) and has three children. His son, Mr. Saurabh Kirpal, Senior Advocate of the Hon'ble

, was on 11 November 2021 approved by the collegium of the Hon'ble

Supreme Court of India The Supreme Court of India ( IAST: ) is the supreme judicial authority of India and is the highest court of the Republic of India under the constitution. It is the most senior constitutional court, has the final decision in all legal matters ...

to be elevated as a Judge of the Delhi High Court. "Supreme Court Collegium Recommends The Elevation Of Advocate Saurabh Kirpal As Delhi High Court Judge", Live Law, 15 November 2021.
/ref>

References

External links

News article dated 13-April-2002
Chief justices of India 1937 births Living people Judges of the Delhi High Court 20th-century Indian judges Judges of the Gujarat High Court People from Lahore 20th-century Indian lawyers 21st-century Indian lawyers 21st-century Indian judges Modern School (New Delhi) alumni {{India-law-bio-stub