Srinivasan Muralidhar (Justice) Age, Wife, Biography

Some Lesser Known Facts About Srinivasan Muralidhar

• Srinivasan Muralidhar hails from Chennai, Tamil Nadu.

• In 1981, he completed his Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry in first class from Vivekananda College, University of Madras.

• After that in 1984, Srinivasan completed his bachelor of Laws course (BL) from the University of Madras. In his BL he secures rank first.

• He was also awarded the Lakshminarasa Reddi, the L.C. Miller Medals and the Carmichael and Innes Prize.

• In April 1984, Muralidhar was a part of a two-member team of Madras Law College and represented India at the 25th Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition held at Washington DC.

• In September 1984, Srinivasan Muralidhar began his legal practice in Chennai.

• In December 19985, he qualified as a Company Secretary (a senior position in the corporate governance of an organization, playing a crucial role in its ensuring adherence to statutory and regulatory requirements).

• In July 1987, Srinivasan moved to Delhi and started working as a junior lawyer to former Attorney General for India, G Ramaswamy. Ramaswamy was serving Additional Solicitor General at that time.

• In 1990, he completed his master’s degree in law specializing in Constitutional and Administrative Law from Nagpur University, securing first rank.

• After his master degree, he was appointed as an amicus curiae by the Supreme Court in several Public Interest Litigation cases and in cases involving convicts on death row.

• From December 2002 to May 2006, Muralidhar served as the counsel for the National Human Rights Commission and the Election Commission of India and a part-time member of the Law Commission.

• In February 2003, Srinivasan Muralidhar was awarded with Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) by the University of Delhi. He completed his Doctoral Programme with the thesis titled “Legal Aid and the Criminal Justice System in India.” Additionally, he also completed fellowship programme from the Institute of Company Secretaries of India.

• On 29 May 2006, Justice Srinivasan was appointed as a Judge of High Court of Delhi. During nearly 14 years, he delivered many important judgments on different issues.

• Later, he was transferred to the Punjab and Haryana High Court and took oath as a judge on 6 March 2020.

• During his tenure as Judge, he always discouraged the use of colonial terms like “My Lord” and “Your Lordship,” in court and asked lawyers to avoid using these forms of address.

• His transfer from the Delhi High Court to the Punjab and Haryana High Court was recommended by the Supreme Court of India headed by then Chief Justice of India Sgarad Arvind Bobde, on 12 February 2020. Then President of India, Pratibha Devisingh Patil approved the recommendation and the transfer was officially announced on the night of 26 February 2020.

• Srinivasan Muralidhar’s transfer happened quickly and received criticism from many lawyers, former judges, civil society groups, and various media organizations across India. Some people even believed that it was a punishment linked to the hearing led by Justice Muralidhar regarding police inaction during the 2020 Delhi riots, violent clashes that took place in Delhi in February 2020 between Hindus and Muslim that led to deaths, injuries and damage to homes, shop, and property.

• On 31 December 2020, he was appointed as 32nd Chief Justice of Orissa High Court and took oath on 4 January 2021. Muralidhar’s elevation as the Chief Justice of Orissa High Court was suggested by the Collegium of the Supreme Court of India, headed by Chief Justice of India S. A. Bobde on 15 December 2020.

• As the Chief Justice of Orissa, he started the Record Room Digitization Centre (RRDC), to preserve the judicial history and to improve court archives. The Orissa High Court also introduced programs to strengthen district courts, including restarting of the Annual District Judges’ Conference, introduction of the Lawyer of the Year Award and the setting up of Regional Judicial Academies.

• On 7 August 2023, Justice Srinivasan Muralidhar retired as the Chief Justice of the Orissa High Court.

• On 16 October 2023, shortly after his retirement he was designated as a Senior Advocate by the Supreme Court of India.

• In November 2025, he was appointed as Chair of the United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem and Israel.

• In June 2026, Srinivasan Muralidhar came into news after the UN Commission headed by Justice Murlidhar released a report, where they accused Israel of deliberately targeting Palestinian children in Gaza and alleging genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. However, Israel rejected the findings, describing the report as “a propaganda piece” and accusing the commission of bias.

• As of June 2026, Justice Srinivasan Muralidhar has been practicing before the Supreme Court of India.