NEW DELHI: President Droupadi Murmu promulgated an ordinance on Sunday raising the number of Supreme Court judges to 37, excluding the Chief Justice of India (CJI). The move, as government sources said, is aimed at bolstering the number of judges in the Supreme Court with the sole intention of ensuring speedy justice and quicker disposal of cases, thereby reducing pendency.
Notably, the present ordinance modifies Section 2 of the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956, substituting ‘thirty-three’ with ‘thirty-seven’. The official gazette notification of May 16 read, “Parliament is not in session, and the President is convinced that conditions exist which make it imperative for her to act without delay.”
Exercising her powers under Article 123 of the Constitution, the president promulgated the ordinance. When Parliament assembles, the ordinance must be placed before both houses. It will cease to have effect if six weeks elapse from the reassembly of Parliament with no resolution approved, or if resolutions disapproving it are passed by both Houses. The President retains the power to withdraw the ordinance as she chooses.
This step to increase the judges is being seen as an attempt to tackle the persistent backlog crisis that has troubled the court for years, especially post-pandemic after e-filing became widespread. The current arrears stand at more than 93,000 cases and could soon touch six digits.
Three more apex judges are slated to retire in 2026. Justices JK Maheshwari and Pankaj Mithal’s tenure would end in June, and Justice Sanjay Karol is due to retire in August 2026.
‘Acting without delay’
The present ordinance modifies Section 2 of the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956, substituting ‘thirty-three’ with ‘thirty-seven’. The official gazette notification read, “Parliament is not in session, and the President is convinced that conditions exist which make it imperative for her to act without delay.”