Bhupinder Nath Kirpal

Bhupinder Nath Kirpal (B. N. Kirpal) (born 8 November 1937) is a retired Indian judge who was the 31st Chief Justice of India, serving from 6 May 2002 until his retirement on 7 November 2002.

Bhupinder Nath Kirpal
31st Chief Justice of India
In office 6 May 2002 – 8 November 2002
Appointed by	K. R. Narayanan
Preceded by	Sam Piroj Bharucha
Succeeded by	Gopal Ballav Pattanaik
Judge of Supreme Court of India
In office 11 September 1995 – 5 May 2002
Nominated by	A. M. Ahmadi
Appointed by	Shankar Dayal Sharma
13th Chief Justice of Gujarat High Court
In office 14 December 1993 – 10 September 1995
Nominated by	M. N. Venkatachaliah
Appointed by	Shankar Dayal Sharma
Preceded by	Sundaram Nainar Sundaram
Succeeded by	Gurudas Datta Kamat
Judge of Delhi High Court
In office 20 November 1979 – 13 December 1993
Nominated by	Y. V. Chandrachud
Appointed by	Neelam Sanjeeva Reddy
Personal details
Born	(1937-11-08) 8 November 1937 (age 87)
Children	Saurabh Kirpal Senior Advocate Delhi High Court
Alma mater	St Stephen's College, Delhi Delhi University

Bhupinder Nath Kirpal being sworn in as the Chief Justice of India

Early life and education

His father, Amar Nath Kirpal, was a lawyer.^[1] He is an alumnus of The Modern School, New Delhi and St Stephens College, Delhi University.^[1] A top cricketer, he represented both his school and college.

Career

He began his legal career as an advocate in 1962 and was appointed a Judge of Delhi High Court in November 1979. In December 1993, he was appointed Chief Justice of the Gujarat High Court.

In September 1995, he was appointed Judge of the Supreme Court of India and became Chief Justice of India in May 2002.

Over the course of his Supreme Court tenure, Kirpal authored 195 judgments and sat on 916 benches.^[2]

By being Chief Justice of India, he also administered oath of office to 11th President of India A. P. J. Abdul Kalam.

After retirement as the Chief Justice of India, he was appointed the 1st Chairman of the National Forest Commission on 21 February 2003.^[3]

Personal life

He was born in Lahore but shifted to Delhi after partition.^{[citation needed]} He was married to late Aruna Kirpal (née Sachdev) and has three children. His son, Mr. Saurabh Kirpal, Senior Advocate of the Hon'ble Delhi High Court, was on 11 November 2021 approved by the collegium of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India to be elevated as a Judge of the Delhi High Court.^[4]