Historic Appointment of Five New Judges to India's Supreme Court

Significant Judicial Expansion in India

On Monday, a monumental step was taken to enhance the infrastructure and judicial processes of the country's highest court, the Supreme Court. Following presidential approval, the Ministry of Law and Justice announced the appointment of five new judges through separate official notifications. Once these judges take their oaths and assume their roles, the total number of judges in the Supreme Court will officially rise to 37, just one short of the recently increased sanctioned strength of 38 judges in the country.

According to notifications released by the Justice Department of the Ministry of Law on Monday morning, the new appointees include senior advocate Venkita Subramani Mohana, Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court Shri Chandrashekar, Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court Shil Nagu, Chief Justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court Sanjeev Sachdeva, and Chief Justice of the Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court Arun Palli.

After the swearing-in ceremony, the total number of judges in the Supreme Court will formally stand at 37. Last month, the government issued an ordinance to amend a law, increasing the sanctioned number of judges in the Supreme Court, including the Chief Justice of India, from 34 to 38. There were already two vacancies in the court prior to these appointments.

With the increase in sanctioned numbers, there were six vacancies in the Supreme Court. Following the appointment of five judges on Monday, one position will remain vacant. The Supreme Court Collegium had recommended these five names on May 27, and the appointments were made within four days.