Gorla Rohini (born 14 April 1955) is a former Indian

judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

and currently head of a government commission investigating categories of

Other Backward Class The Other Backward Class is a collective term used by the Government of India to classify castes which are educationally or socially backward. It is one of several official classifications of the population of India, along with General castes, S ...

es in India. She was the first female Chief Justice of the

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. ...

and also served as a judge on the

Andhra Pradesh High Court The High Court of Andhra Pradesh is the High Court of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. The seat of the High Court is currently located at Nelapadu. History The High Court of Andhra Pradesh was established in the year 1954 when the sta ...

Early life

G. Rohini was born on 14 April 1955 in

Visakhapatnam , image_alt = , image_caption = From top, left to right: Visakhapatnam aerial view, Vizag seaport, Simhachalam Temple, Aerial view of Rushikonda Beach, Beach road, Novotel, Novotel Visakhapatnam, INS Kursura (S20), INS ...

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

, India. She completed her bachelor's degree in science at

Osmania University Osmania University is a collegiate public state university located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. Mir Osman Ali Khan, the 7th Nizam of Hyderabad in 1918 , He released a farman to establish OSMANIA UNIVERSITY on the day of 28 August 1918. It ...

and law at Andhra University College of Law, Visakhapatnam.

Career

Litigation

G. Rohini began her career as an advocate in Andhra Pradesh, working in the chambers of senior advocate Koka Raghava Rao from 1980 onwards. As an advocate, her practice focused on administrative and civil matters in courts in the State of Andhra Pradesh. She also worked on issues concerning the protection of the girl child and working women. She was also involved in legal journalism, as a reporter and served as executive editor of Andhra Pradesh Law Journals in 1985. In 1994, she was appointed a Government pleader, appearing for the Government of Andhra Pradesh in cases concerning environment, consumer affairs, labour, employment and civil service. She also served as the Chair of the Andhra Pradesh Bar Council.

Judge, Andhra Pradesh High Court

G. Rohini was appointed an additional judge on the Andhra Pradesh High Court on 25 June 2001, and became a permanent judge on 31 July 2002. During her tenure at the Andhra Pradesh High Court, Rohini was a judge in a number of significant decisions, including a judgment that allowed the state government to appoint special officers to local governments, as well as establishing quotes in local governments for Other Backward Classes. While serving as a judge on the Andhra Pradesh High Court, Rohini was the head of the Andhra Pradesh State Legal Services Authority, and the High Court Juvenile Justice Committee, and released a manual on the rights of women. She was also the chairperson of the Andhra Pradesh Judicial Academy. Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court On 21 April 2014, G. Rohini was appointed Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court, and is the first female judge to hold that position. She succeeded Justice N.V. Ramana. During her tenure as a judge in the Delhi High Court, G. Rohini was a judge in a number of cases concerning significant questions of constitutional law, such as the ongoing conflict regarding the division of state and central power in concerning the administration of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, the right to privacy on instant messaging platforms, and the audit of public power distribution companies by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India. Previously, she was the judge at

. She retired as the Chief justice of Delhi High Court on 13 April 2017 on attaining superannuation.

Post-Judicial Appointments

Commission for Sub-Categorisation of OBCs

In October 2017, G. Rohini was appointed by President of India to head a five member commission to examine the sub-categorization of Other Backward Classes (OBC) under Article 340 of the Indian Constitution. In July 2022, the Commission received its thirteenth extension of time to complete this task, with a report now due on January 31, 2023.