Former SC judge Madan Lokur appointed UN Internal Justice Council Chairperson

Justice Madan B Lokur –a retired judge of the Supreme Court—has been appointed as chairperson of the United Nations Internal Justice Council (UNIJC) comprising distinguished jurists from across the world for a four-year term.

“I have the pleasure to appoint you, with immediate effect, as a member of the Internal Justice Council, in the capacity of chairperson, for a term ending on 12 November 2028,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a December 19 communication to Justice Lokur.

“The other members of the Council (in alphabetical order) are: Ms. Carmen Artigas (Uruguay), distinguished external jurist nominated by staff; Ms. Rosalie Balkin (Australia), distinguished external jurist nominated by management; Mr. Stefan Brezina (Austria), staff representative; and Mr. Jay Pozenel (United States of America), management representative,” the communication read.

“Heartiest congratulations to Justice Lokur for being appointed Chairperson of International Justice Council of the UN. No one can be more appropriate for this job. A judge who spoke truth to power in office, acquitted himself with great dignity & continued to speak boldly after retiring,” Supreme Court lawyer Prashant Bhushan wrote on X.

Born in 1953, Justice Lokur was appointed a judge of the Supreme Court on June 4, 2012. He demitted office on December 30, 2018, upon attaining the age of superannuation.

In 2019, Justice Lokur was appointed to the Supreme Court of Fiji as a judge of its non-resident panel. He was the first Indian judge to be appointed as a judge in the Supreme Court of another country.