The NLSIU Community is delighted to share that two of its alumni, Justice Nerale V. Bhavani (B.A., LL.B. (Hons.); 1999) and Justice K. S. Bharath Kumar (B.A., LL.B. (Hons.); 2001), have been appointed Additional Judges of the High Court of Karnataka. Both Justice Bhavani and Justice Kumar come to the High Court after extensive service in the District Judiciary.

Justice Bhavani has previously served in the district courts of Mangaluru, Ballari, Chikkaballapur and Bengaluru. Most recently, she held the office of Principal Secretary in the Department of Law, Justice and Human Rights, Government of Karnataka.

Justice Bharat Kumar, who was awarded the Director’s Gold Medal at NLSIU, began his professional life at the Bar. He practised before the Hon’ble High Court of Karnataka, City Civil Courts, Magistrate Courts, Tribunals and Commissions. He joined the bench as a Direct District Judge and then as an Additional District Judge at Tumakuru and Mysuru. Thereafter, he served in various administrative capacities in the Hon’ble High Court of Karnataka, Bengaluru, including as Registrar (Review and Statistics), Registrar (Judicial), Registrar (Vigilance) and Registrar General. He also served as the Principal City Civil and Sessions Judge, Bengaluru.

Reflecting on his appointment, Justice Kumar said, “As an alumnus of NLS, my elevation to the High Court of Karnataka is a proud and significant milestone in my journey. My years at NLS were formative in shaping my understanding of law, discipline and professional responsibility. The intellectual rigour and strong foundation I received at NLS have remained valuable throughout my career. I look back on my time at the institution with great pride and gratitude, and I am happy to see NLS continue to shape generations of lawyers.”

Vice Chancellor, Prof. (Dr) Sudhir Krishnaswamy, was especially excited by these appointments as “They are the first NLS graduates from the district court system to be elevated to the High Court. He observed that “the appointment of Justice Kumar and Justice Bhavani to the High Court opens up new paths of ambition and aspirations for students and alumni of the university. We are confident that several more will follow this path.”

Prof. Krishnaswamy also expressed that, “At NLSIU, we are deeply committed to encouraging public service careers. Today’s announcement will inspire several others in the NLS Community to commit themselves to transformative careers in public service.”

Speaking on behalf of the NLSIU Alumni Association, Mani Gupta (Batch of 2008) expressed, “The elevation of Justice Nerale Veerabhadraiah Bhavani and Justice Bharath Kumar as Additional Judges of the Karnataka High Court is a proud moment for the National Law School of India University and its alumni community. Both have served with distinction as judicial officers within the Karnataka judiciary, and their elevation is a fitting recognition of years spent adjudicating at the trial court level — often the most demanding and consequential stage of the justice delivery system, where litigants first encounter the law.

For NLS and its alumni fraternity, this is an occasion for genuine pride. It reaffirms the institution’s enduring commitment to producing lawyers and judicial officers who serve the Constitution and the citizen with equal devotion. We extend our warmest congratulations to both judges.”

Justice Bhavani and Justice Kumar now join the other members of the NLSIU Community on High Court benches across the country:

• Justice Suraj Govindraj, Karnataka High Court (B.A., LL.B. (Hons.); 1995)
• Justice Sunil Dutt Yadav, High Court of Karnataka (B.A., LL.B. (Hons.); 1996)
• Justice Shekhar Bobby Saraf, West Bengal High Court, BA. LL.B Hons. (B.A., LL.B. (Hons.); 1996)
• Justice Rishad Medora, Calcutta High Court (B.A., LL.B. (Hons.); 2003)
• Justice Sanjeeb Kumar Panigrahi, Odisha High Court (LLM; 2006)
• Justice Swarupama Chaturvedi, Allahabad High Court (Faculty at NLS from 2006-2012)

As Justice Bhavani and Justice Kumar take up their new responsibilities, the University congratulates them and wishes them the best for an illustrious career on the High Court!