Centre notifies ordinance to add four judges to Supreme Court

THe unification authorities on sat notified an ordinance increasing the sanctioned strength of book of judges in the sublime Court from 33 to 37, excluding the Chief Justice of India (CJI), paving the way for the appointment of four additional judges amid rising pendency and growing calls for more constitution benches.The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Ordinance, 2026 received President Droupadi Murmu’s assent and was published in the Gazette of India on Saturday. The ordinance amends Section 2 of the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956 by substituting the word “thirty-three” with “thirty-seven”.The ordinance was promulgated under Article 123 of the Constitution since Parliament is currently not in session. It comes days after the Union cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the proposal following a formal request made earlier this year by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant.The government, in its statement on May 5, said the increase is intended to ensure “speedier justice,” pointing to the growing backlog. The latest expansion comes more than six years after the previous revision in 2019, when Parliament raised the strength from 30 to 33 judges.The move marks the first expansion in the apex court’s strength since 2019, when Parliament had increased the number of judges from 30 to 33, excluding the CJI. The latest revision comes at a time when the Supreme Court is grappling with a pendency of more than 92,000 cases, with repeated concerns being raised over the inability to regularly constitute larger constitution benches owing to a shortage of judges.People aware of the development had earlier indicated that CJI Kant, in a communication sent to the Centre in February, sought an immediate increase of four judges while proposing a calibrated approach under which the impact of the expansion could later be assessed before considering any further increase. The proposal was also followed up by the CJI’s office, underlining the urgency of augmenting judicial strength.The Constitution does not prescribe a fixed number of judges in the Supreme Court. Under Article 124(1), it provides for a Chief Justice of India and leaves it to Parliament to determine the strength of the court through legislation, allowing periodic revisions in response to rising caseloads.While the expansion aims to ease the burden on existing benches, where most matters are heard by two- or three-judge panels, with larger constitution benches convened for significant legal questions, it also sets the stage for a substantial round of judicial appointments over the coming months.With the sanctioned strength set to rise to 37, the Supreme Court will have as many as 10 vacancies that need filling during the tenure of CJI Surya Kant, who heads the collegium responsible for recommending appointments. His predecessor, former CJI Bhushan R Gavai, retired in November, while Justice Rajesh Bindal demitted office in April.The court is also set to see a series of retirements through the year: Justice Pankaj Mithal is due to retire on June 6, followed by Justice JK Maheshwari on June 28, Justice Sanjay Karol on August 28, and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma on November 29.With CJI Kant himself set to retire in February 2027, the expanded strength means a significant portion of the court’s composition will be shaped under his tenure as the presiding judge of the collegium.The Supreme Court officially began on January 28, 1950, with a sanctioned strength of eight judges — one CJI and seven puisne judges. This structure was set by the Constitution, and in its early years, all eight judges sat together to hear cases.Later, it worked with a modest sanctioned strength of 10 judges (excluding the CJI) under the 1956 Act. This was first increased to 13 in 1960 and then to 17 in 1977. However, the effective working strength remained capped at 15 judges for a period until 1979, when the cabinet restriction was lifted following a request from the then CJI.Subsequent decades saw further expansions. The sanctioned strength was increased to 25 in 1986 and later to 30 in 2008. The most recent revision prior to the present proposal came in 2019, reflecting a continued effort to align judicial capacity with the growing docket.