Located along the eastern side of the River Ganges, also known as the Hoogly River, the westernmost distributary of the Ganges in West Bengal, and situated a few yards to the north of Prinsep Ghat, the Judges Ghat, the brain child of Sir Elijah Impey, was once categorically marked for the use of the dignified British officials only, especially Judges, who were assigned by the Empire in India, and was therefore, christened as the Judges Ghat. In fact, the Ghat was actually constructed at the instance of Sir Elijah Impey, the first chief justice of the Supreme Court at Fort William in Bengal, and he was instrumental in the construction of the new Ghat. Consequently, when the construction of the proposed Ghat was completed, it was christened as the Judges Ghat.

Notably, Elijah Impey is infamous in the history of India for his vindictive judgment of hanging Maharaja Nandakumar, who was falsely accused by his friend, Warren Hastings, the first Governor-General of Bengal, of forging a bond in an attempt to deprive a widow of more than half her inheritance. The hanging of Maharaja Nandakumar was marked by some historians as a judicial murder, and later, Elijah Impey was subjected to an Impeachment in the British House of Commons, in 1788, for high crimes and misdemeanours, along with Warren Hastings, and was also accused by Lord Macaulay in the House of Commons of committing a judicial murder.

Nevertheless, unlike the other Ghats in the vicinity, namely Prinsep Ghat, Babu Ghat, and others, Judges Ghat does not have any attached building, although there is a sheltered concrete space overlooking the water body, which is used by the Hindus for performing religious rituals.

Long after its construction, and serving as an important place for performing Hindu religious rites, the Ghat was given a new face, when after the completion of a makeover by the joint venture of Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) & Prerna Foundation, a renovated and beautified Judges Ghat, renamed the Prerna Ghat, was inaugurated on 20 August 2025, to mark the occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi.