Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka was sworn in as the Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court on Friday.

Governor Vajubhai R Vala administered the oath of office to Justice Oka at a ceremony held at the at Glass House in Raj Bhavan in the city.

Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy, Deputy Chief Minister Dr G Parameshwar, Judges of the High Court, Chief Secretary TM Vijay Bhaskar, DG&IGP Neelamani N Raju and others were also present at the ceremony.

Justice Oka, 58 succeeded Justice Dinesh Maheshwari who was elevated to the Supreme Court Judge in January.

Justice Oka was serving as the second senior-most judge in the Bombay High Court before being elevated as the CJ of Karnataka.

The Centre had earlier notified the appointment of Justice Oka as the Chief Justice of Karnataka by President Ram Nath Kovind following a recommendation by the Supreme Court collegium .

About Justice Oka:

Justice Oka completed his LLM (Master of Laws) degree from the University of Bombay and enrolled as an advocate in 1983. He practised in the Thane District Court in the chambers of his father, Shreeniwas W Oka. In 1985-86, he joined the chambers of V P Tipnis, a former judge of the Bombay High Court and former Lokayukta. He has also appeared in several important matters and public interest litigations.

The judge is known for his liberal outlook and for giving weightage to civil liberties over the powers of the state government. He was part of the bench that gave comprehensive directions for improving the condition of prisons, including care for children of prisoners, in Maharashtra.