AGARTALA, May 16 (TIWN): Justice Tinlianthang Vaiphei of Guwahati High Court on Monday sworn in as the new Chief Justice of High Court of Tripura at Raj bjawan. He has replaced former Chief Justice Deepak Kumar Gupta who held the position since a separate High Court for the State was created in March 2013.

Governor Tathagata Roy administered the oath of office and secrecy to Justice Tinlianthang Vaiphei during a ceremony program at Raj Bhawan.

Chief Minister Manik Sarkar along with his cabinet colleagus and top administrative officials remained present in the oath ceremony.

However, Justice of the High Court of Tripura Subhasish Talapatra and the registrar of High Court also remained present in the program.

The Tripura government sources announced that Justice Deepak Gupta will assume the office of Chief Justice of the Chhattisgarh High Court. However, he has already left Tripura for Bilaspur, judicial headquarters of the Chhattisgarh State.

Mr. Tinlianthang Vaiphei had been senior-most judge after Chief Justice of the Guwahati High Court. Born in March 1956 he would be the first judicial officer from Mizoram to be elevated to the position of Chief Justice.

Tripura, Manipur and Meghalaya have had separate High Courts from 2013 after the Parliament amended North East Areas (Re-organisation) Act of 1971.

Earlier the States were under judicature of the Guwahati High Court which was common for all the northeastern States.

Sources said that the President Pranab Mukherjee has issued an appointment order for both the judges.

Justice Deepak Kumar Gupta will be remembered for some landmark judgments he delivered during his tenure in Tripura. He presided over benches that disqualified recruitment of 10,300 government school teachers for serious loopholes; regulation in passenger transport system; ordered retrial of 35 years old murder of Congress MLA Parimal Saha and release of judicial enquiry commission report into assassination of State’s Health Minister Bimal Sinha.