Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya

Early Life and Education 

Justice D.K. Upadhyaya was born on 16 June 1965 in Muskarai, District, Ambedkar Nagar, Uttar Pradesh. After completing his schooling at Colvin Taluqdars’ College in Lucknow, Justice Upadhyaya graduated with an LL.B. from Lucknow University in 1991. 

Career as a lawyer 

Justice Upadhyaya enrolled as an Advocate with the Uttar Pradesh Bar Association on 11 May 1991. He initially joined his father—R.A. Upadhyaya—in practice before the Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court. Later, he joined the chambers of Senior Advocate Mohd. Arif Khan and S.K. Kalia, and practiced on the side of civil, constitutional and service matters. 

Justice Upadhyaya served as the Chief Standing Counsel for the State of Uttar Pradesh from May 2007 until his elevation to the Bench. 

Career as a Judge

After 20 years of standing at the Bar, Justice Upadhyay was appointed a puisne Judge of the Allahabad High Court on 21 November 2011 and became a Permanent Judge of the Allahabad High Court on 6 August 2013. 

A decade later, he was appointed as the Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court on 29 July 2023. On 21 January 2025, Justice Upadhyaya was transferred as the Chief Justice of Delhi High Court. 

In Delhi, Justice Upadhyaya has been part of the Administrative and General Supervision Committee, the Grievance Redressal Committee for Advocates and the Committee for the Designation of Senior Advocates. 

Justice Upadhyaya was engaged by former Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna to file a preliminary report regarding the allegations against Justice Yashwant Varma in the cash-in-house controversy. He sought initial responses from Justice Varma on the matter and on 21 March 2025, filed an initial report to CJI Khanna, noting that the matter requires a “deeper probe”. 

The Supreme Court Collegium, led by CJI Surya Kant, recommended Justice Upadhyay’s appointment as a Judge of the Supreme Court on 28 September 2026. 

Notable Judgements 

In Praveen Singh v High Court of Delhi (2025), the Division Bench of Chief Justice Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela directed authorities to ensure reservation of transgender candidates in public employment. The Bench expressed concerns over inadequacy in fulfilling the statutory obligations cast on the State Governments as per the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019. 

In Vinesh Phogat v Wrestling Federation of India (2026), the Division Bench of Chief Justice Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia allowed an internationally acclaimed wrestler to participate in the Selection Trials of the Asian Games 2026. She was previously prevented from participating under the existing policy for taking a temporary retirement following her pregnancy. The Bench held that motherhood cannot be a ground to disadvantage women in competitive sports.