Key Highlights
- The sanctioned strength of the Supreme Court has been raised from 34 to 38 judges.
- Five vacancies created by the increase have been filled by the collegium.
- Four High Court chief justices and senior advocate V Mohana have been recommended.
- V Mohana will become the second woman directly elevated from the bar to the Supreme Court.
- The collegium comprises Chief Justice Surya Kant and four senior judges.
Detailed Insights
The President issued an ordinance augmenting the Supreme Court’s sanctioned strength to 38 members, aiming to ease the chronic backlog, lessen the workload of sitting judges, and accelerate case disposal. Following the ordinance, the collegium—headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant and joined by Justices Vikram Nath, J.K. Maheshwari, B.V. Nagarathna, and M.M. Sundresh—deliberated and submitted five names for appointment. Once confirmed, the working strength will rise to 37, leaving a single vacancy.
Four of the recommended candidates are sitting chief justices of high courts: Justice Sheel Nagu (Punjab & Haryana), Justice Shree Chandrashekhar (Bombay), Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva (Madhya Pradesh), and Justice Arun Palli (Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh). Their anticipated tenures range from roughly three to three‑and‑a‑half years, based on statutory retirement ages.
Senior advocate V Mohana, a first‑generation lawyer from Coimbatore, has practiced for over 37 years, became an Advocate‑on‑Record in 1996, and was designated Senior Advocate in 2015. Her elevation marks only the second instance of a woman being appointed directly from the bar to the Supreme Court, the first being Justice Indu Malhotra. The move is hailed as a milestone for gender balance in India’s higher judiciary.
Key Concepts
- Supreme Court Collegium: A body of the Chief Justice of India and the four senior-most Supreme Court judges that recommends appointments and transfers of judges in the higher judiciary.
- Sanctioned Strength: The maximum number of judges that a court may have, as authorized by law or executive order.
- Direct Bar Appointment: Elevation of a practicing lawyer to the Supreme Court bench without prior service as a High Court judge.
- Tenure Projection: An estimate of how long a newly appointed judge will serve before reaching the mandatory retirement age.