Guwahati: The Union Cabinet on tuesday ,May 5, approved a proposal to raise the sanctioned strength of the Supreme Court of India from 34 judges, including the Chief Justice of India, to a total of 38.
The Chief Justice of India (CJI) is one of the court’s 33 appointed judges, to increase this strength by four, a bill would be introduced in the upcoming Parliamentary session, said Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw
The Cabinet’s approval is a step in an appropriate approach toward resolving the court’s ongoing pendency matter, which has been concerning it for years, particularly since the pandemic, when the ability to file electronically boosted the volume of cases. Even though the court is entering summer holiday, or “partial working days,” in June, the backlog of 92,385 cases is on the verge of reaching six digits.
After a six-year hiatus, the government has approved additional judges for the Supreme Court.
Section 2 of the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956 was last revised by the Parliament in 2019, increasing the sanctioned strength from 31 to 33 (excluding the Chief Justice of India).
The 1956 Act would be amended with Cabinet approval. The Supreme Court’s sanctioned strength can only be increased by Parliament, according to Article 124(1).
The Supreme Court Collegium will suggest judges to the government for nomination to the highest court following the implementation of the amended legislation.