The Union Cabinet on May 5, 2026 approved the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Bill, 2026, amending the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956 to increase the sanctioned strength of Supreme Court judges from 33 puisne judges (34 total including CJI) to 37 puisne judges (38 total including CJI). The Bill will be introduced in Parliament for passage.
Background: Constitutional and Statutory Framework
Dimension
Detail
Constitutional provision
Article 124(1): “There shall be a Supreme Court of India consisting of a Chief Justice of India and, until Parliament by law prescribes a larger number, of not more than seven other Judges”
Statutory authority
Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956 — Parliament exercises its Article 124 power through this Act
Current sanctioned strength
CJI + 33 Puisne Judges = 34 total
New sanctioned strength
CJI + 37 Puisne Judges = 38 total
Net addition
4 additional judges
History of Supreme Court Strength Increases
Year
Total Strength
Increase
1950 (Constitution)
8 (CJI + 7)
—
1956 (original Act)
11
+3
1960
14
+3
1977
18
+4
1986
26
+8
2008
31
+5
2019
34 (CJI + 33)
+3
2026
38 (CJI + 37)
+4
Why the Increase? — Pendency Crisis
Indicator
Figure
Pending cases in Supreme Court
~80,000+ cases
Pending cases in all courts combined
~4.5 crore+
Pending cases in High Courts
~60 lakh+
Pending cases in District Courts
~4 crore+
Vacancies in High Courts
~400+ (as of 2026)
Each additional SC judge can hear hundreds of cases annually, significantly boosting disposal rates
The SC handles admissions, constitutional matters, criminal appeals, writ petitions, and original jurisdiction disputes between states
The 2026 increase directly responds to the National Court Management Systems Committee recommendations on judicial capacity
Total strength: 34 → 38 including the Chief Justice of India
Financial burden: Salaries, pensions, housing, and administrative costs met from the Consolidated Fund of India (Article 146 + Supreme Court Judges (Salaries and Conditions of Service) Act, 1958)
What Does NOT Change
The appointment process (collegium system under Article 124(2))
The qualification criteria (advocate of HC for 10 years, or distinguished jurist)
Tenure (retirement at age 65)
Jurisdiction (original, appellate, advisory under Articles 131, 132-136, 143)
This content was researched and written in collaboration with Claude AI (Anthropic). Key facts are verified against web sources before publishing — but errors can occasionally slip through. If you spot something incorrect, our team wants to fix it immediately.
