Justice Mehta vs Justice Sharma: Rajasthan High Court Row Escalates With Fourth Letter to CJI

The controversy surrounding the Rajasthan High Court has deepened just as its leadership changed hands, with Supreme Court Justice Sandeep Mehta escalating allegations against Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma days before the Collegium recommended Justice Sanjay K. Agrawal as the court’s new Chief Justice. The dispute has raised questions over judicial administration, internal enquiries, institutional accountability and the exercise of administrative powers.

Justice Mehta’s latest communication to Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, dated August 30, is his fourth letter concerning Justice Sharma. In his earlier letters of August 2, 10 and 17, Mehta alleged maladministration, malpractices, nepotism, favouritism and misuse of administrative powers, while urging the appointment of a permanent Chief Justice from outside Rajasthan.

The fourth letter contains fresh allegations concerning an internal enquiry against a judicial officer accused of displaying indecent pictures of a female judicial officer on his mobile phone. Mehta claimed that a three-member complaint committee comprising women judges recorded in resolutions dated May 21 and July 9, 2026, that Sharma had directly intervened in the proceedings. He alleged the intervention could undermine the committee’s independence and potentially vitiate the enquiry.

Mehta further alleged that confidential enquiry records were shared with Registry officials and judicial officers, raising concerns over breach of confidentiality. He also cited alleged arbitrary rule changes, interference in a land dispute, creation of higher-pay posts and wider concerns about corruption and administrative breakdown. These remain allegations and have not been independently established.

Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma has rejected the accusations as baseless and said he submitted his response to the CJI with supporting material. The controversy widened after lawyers at the Jaipur and Jodhpur benches protested against his functioning, with calls for an impartial examination of the allegations and appointment of a permanent Chief Justice. Sharma went on leave amid the protests.

Justice Mehta, a former Rajasthan High Court judge elevated in May 2011, later became Chief Justice of the Gauhati High Court in February 2023 before joining the Supreme Court in November 2023. Sharma was elevated to the Rajasthan High Court in November 2016, transferred to Patna in January 2022 and later to Punjab and Haryana before his repatriation to Rajasthan.

On August 31, the Supreme Court Collegium recommended Justice Sanjay K. Agrawal of the Chhattisgarh High Court as Rajasthan’s permanent Chief Justice. He was sworn in on September 7.

CJI Surya Kant has stressed that allegations against a sitting judge cannot be adjudicated in the public domain and that Sharma must receive a fair opportunity to respond. While the timing has prompted speculation over judicial appointments, there is no established evidence of a political conspiracy. The immediate leadership question has been settled; questions surrounding the allegations remain for the appropriate institutional process.