NEW DELHI, March 23: Former Chief Justice of India RC Lahoti died at a hospital in New Delhi on Wednesday. Justice Lahoti was appointed the 35th Chief Justice of India on June 1, 2004 and retired on November 1, 2005. He as 81.

Ramesh Chandra was enrolled as an advocate in 1962 in his home district Guna and joined the Bench in April 1977. He became a judge of the Madhya Pradesh High Court on May 3, 1988 and later the Delhi High Court. He was appointed as a judge of the Supreme Court on September 12, 1998.

The former Chief Justice of India had overturned an earlier apex court verdict that a ban on the slaughter of the cow’s progeny - old bulls and bullocks - was unconstitutional and upheld Gujarat’s 1994 amendment. He was also recently chosen as an arbitrator by the Government in the high-profile tax case of telecom major Vodafone.

Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju tweeted, "Saddened to hear the passing away of Shri RC Lahoti, former Chief Justice of India. He rose from a humble background and reached the highest position of our country's judiciary because of his ability, knowledge and wisdom."