New Delhi: The Union government has finally appointed Delhi high court judge Siddharth Mridul as the new full-time Chief Justice of the Manipur high court, more than three months after the collegium’s recommendation.The recommendation to appoint Justice Mridul as the Manipur high court Chief Justice was made on July 5, Hindustan Times reported.The government’s delay in acting upon it had led to concerns.On Monday (October 16) , Union law minister, Arjun Ram Meghwal, made the announcement on platform X (formerly Twitter). “In exercise of the power conferred by the Constitution of India, President of India, after consultation with Chief Justice of India, is pleased to appoint Sh Justice Siddharth Mridul, Judge of the Delhi High Court, as Chief Justice of Manipur High Court. I convey best wishes to him,” Meghwal posted.This appointment follows the elevation of Justice P.V. Sanjay Kumar to the Supreme Court, leaving the position of Chief Justice of the Manipur high court vacant since February 2023.Additionally, a controversial order by Justice Muralidaran, acting Chief Justice of the Manipur high court, on March 23, had triggered ethnic clashes in the region.On October 9, the collegium recommended the transfer of Muralidaran to the Calcutta high court.The very next day, on October 10, Justice Muralidharan had requested the collegium to either transfer him back to his parent high court of Madras or let him stay on in the Manipur high court.The collegium in its note on October 11 recorded its rejection of Justice Muralidaran’s request.As on date, there are 26 recommendations for the transfer of judges from one high court to another that are awaiting action by the government. During a hearing on October 9, the Attorney General informed the court that 14 of these recommendations have been processed, but the remaining 12 are still under examination. This delay in processing judicial transfers has raised concerns regarding the efficient functioning of the judiciary.