Former Chief Justice of India R C Lahoti dies at 81

New Delhi, March 23

Former Chief Justice of India Ramesh Chandra Lahoti died at a hospital here on Wednesday evening, family sources said.

He was 81 years old.

Justice Lahoti was appointed as the 35th chief justice of India on June 1, 2004. He retired on November 1, 2005.

Born on November 1, 1940, he joined the Bar in Guna district in 1960 and enrolled as an advocate in 1962.

He was recruited directly to the bench in April 1977, from the Bar to the State Higher Judicial Service and was appointed as a district and sessions judge.

After serving in the post for a year, Justice Lohati resigned in May 1978 and returned to the Bar to practice mainly in the High Court.

He was appointed an additional judge of the Madhya Pradesh High Court on May 3, 1988, and made a permanent judge on August 4 the next year.

He was transferred to Delhi High Court on February 7, 1994, and later appointed as a judge of the Supreme Court on December 9, 1998.