From 24-year-old magistrate to judge hearing Arvind Kejriwal’s recusal plea: Meet Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma

From English literature student to law graduate

According to information available on the Delhi High Court website, Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, whose judicial career spans over three decades, did her BA (Hons) in English Literature from Delhi University, where she was adjudged the best all-round student of the year at Daulat Ram College.

In 1991, she acquired her LLB degree and completed her LLM in 2004. Justice Sharma also holds a Diploma in Marketing Management, Advertising, and Public Relations.

Before her elevation as a judge in the Delhi High Court in March 2022, she was the Principal District and Sessions Judge-cum-Special Judge (CBI) at Rouse Avenue Court. In November 2019, she was appointed the Principal District and Sessions Judge (North District).

Last year, she was awarded a PhD for her doctoral thesis titled “Achieving Constitutional Vision of Justice Through Judicial Education: A Comparative Study of the Best Practices in the UK, USA, Singapore, and Canada.”

Age 24, designation magistrate

According to Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma’s profile, she actively participated in debates and various co-curricular and extracurricular activities in her college years, earning numerous awards and certificates. She was also awarded a Certificate of Merit by the National Service Scheme, University of Delhi, for completing two years of service as an NSS volunteer.

A dynamic student with an excellent academic record at all levels, she entered the judiciary at the age of 24 as a magistrate and went on to become a sessions judge on the day she turned 35.

Literary work: ‘Beyond Baghban’ to ‘Judicial Education’

Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma has also authored several books. Her maiden book, ‘Don’t Break After Break-Up’, offers guidance to women who have chosen to remain single or have experienced difficult break-ups. While ‘Beyond Baghban’ explores emotional and financial challenges faced by senior citizens, ‘Tumhari Sakhi’ seeks to raise awareness among women about their rights and the importance of speaking up against violence.

With her fourth venture, ‘Love Full Circle’, Justice Sharma stepped into writing fiction, while ‘Judicial Education – Achieving Constitutional Vision of Justice’ elaborates on strengthening the justice delivery system and helping judges realise the constitutional vision of justice.

Why the controversy?

Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma’s name became the centre of controversy when former CM Arvind Kejriwal filed a recusal plea, claiming that the discharge order passed by the trial court after over 3 months of hearing was declared erroneous in five minutes of hearing by the high court. “I was really shocked, and I started to doubt, serious apprehensions about whether the court is biased and whether I will get justice here,” he said. Kejriwal further argued that the judge’s order, in five matters including Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia’s bail plea, almost amounted to passing judgment.

A Delhi court discharged former Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and former deputy CM Manish Sisodia in the excise policy case.

Seeking Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma’s withdrawal from his case, Kejriwal raised grounds of reasonable apprehension of bias and said his analysis of the criminal cases pertaining to MP/MLAs before her court shows there are only two cases — one of them being his and another case involving a political opponent of the BJP — where the court is taking up the matters expeditiously.

Kejriwal cited his apprehension of bias on political lines, as well as based on social media posts, stating that he is “strongly affected and apprehends bias of this court based on social media posts which show a conflict of interest of this court”.

Here are some of her key cases:

‘False rape accusations leave unhealed scars’

While upholding the discharge of three men in a 2023 rape case, Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma observed that false allegations of rape inflict “scars that remain unhealed for a lifetime” on those who are wrongly accused. She also noted that such cases undermine public confidence in the justice system, which is meant to protect genuine survivors of sexual violence.

“Loss of reputation, incarceration, social stigma, and psychological trauma suffered by an accused who is ultimately found to have been falsely implicated may leave scars that remain unhealed for a lifetime, just as the violation of dignity and bodily integrity leaves deep and lasting wounds in genuine cases of sexual assault,” the December 15, 2025, order stated.

‘Forged documents affect country’s standing’

In February 2026, while dismissing the anticipatory bail plea of a man accused of acting as a key facilitator in an organised racket involving forged travel documents and the facilitation of illegal foreign travel, Justice Sharma said that illegal migration through fake documents is not a matter confined to a private dispute between individuals.

She added that such conduct exposes those involved to serious risks and carries the potential to adversely affect the country’s standing in the international community. Highlighting the non-cooperative conduct of the petitioner, Justice Sharma noted that in cases involving organised crime and cross-border operations, custodial interrogation often becomes essential to unearth the full extent of the conspiracy.

‘Homemaker does not sit idle’

Dealing with a case involving the grant of maintenance in a matrimonial dispute, Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma observed that the assumption that a non-earning spouse is “idle” reflects a misunderstanding of domestic contribution.

“A homemaker does not ‘sit idle’; she performs labour that enables the earning spouse to function effectively. To disregard this contribution while adjudicating claims of maintenance would be unrealistic and unjust,” the order pronounced in February read.

Justice Sharma made this remark on the husband’s argument that the wife cannot sit “idle” and claim maintenance.

‘Public roads can’t be death traps’

Refusing anticipatory bail to two men accused of the death of a 25-year-old private bank employee who fell into a 14-foot-deep sewer pit dug in the middle of a Janakpuri road, Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma observed that the precious lives of the general public cannot be left to the mercy of God.

“Suffice it to say, the precious lives of the general public cannot be left to the mercy of God while excavation work is carried out on busy roads without ensuring basic safety measures,” Justice Sharma said on February 25, 2026.

Education vs parents’ battle

As a principal judge in Delhi in 2019, she intervened to place a young boy’s academic future ahead of his parents’ legal battle. While his father opposed the transfer because he thought it would break their relationship, his mother supported his wish to study in the UK.

Sharma then decided in favour of the child’s goals, stating that a student’s desire for a top-notch education should never be suppressed. She lauded the minor’s “remarkable” vision and clarity and considered his candid admission that the only thing preventing him from realising his aspirations was the parental conflict.