Prafulla Chandra Pant

Hon'ble Justice
Prafulla Chandra Pant
Justice Pant (c. 2004)
Member of National Human Rights Commission of India
In office
22 April 2019 – 11 September 2021
Appointed byRam Nath Kovind
Preceded byPinaki Chandra Ghose
Succeeded byMahesh Mittal Kumar
Acting Chairperson
In office
25 April 2021 – 1 June 2021
Appointed byRam Nath Kovind
Preceded byH. L. Dattu
Succeeded byArun Kumar Mishra
Judge of Supreme Court of India
In office
13 August 2014 – 29 August 2017
Nominated byR. M. Lodha
Appointed byPranab Mukherjee
2nd Chief Justice of Meghalaya High Court
In office
20 September 2013 – 12 August 2014
Nominated byP. Sathasivam
Appointed byPranab Mukherjee
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Judge of Uttarakhand High Court
In office
29 June 2004 – 19 September 2013
Nominated byR. C. Lahoti
Appointed byA. P. J. Abdul Kalam
Personal details
Born (1952-08-30) 30 August 1952
Spouse
Rashmi Pant
(m. 1979)
Children3
Alma materUniversity of Allahabad (B.Sc)
University of Lucknow(LL.B)
Occupation
  • Judge
  • author
Other offices
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Prafulla Chandra Pant (born 30 August 1952) is a retired Indian judge and author who served as a judge of the Supreme Court of India from 2014 to 2017. He later served as a member of the National Human Rights Commission of India from 2019 to 2021, and briefly acted as its chairperson. Prior to his appointment as a judge of the Supreme Court of India, he had previously served as chief justice of the Meghalaya High Court at Shillong and as a judge of the Uttarakhand High Court at Nainital.

He was the first judge from the Uttarakhand to serve as a judge of Supreme Court of India. He was also the first judge from the Meghalaya High Court to be elevated to the Supreme Court of India, previously having served as its chief justice.

Pant has been instrumental in major cases, including decisions on execution of Yakub Memon, criminal appeals, defamation laws, religious conversions, and bank employees.