Key Terms & Concepts — UPSC Mains
Article 216
"The constitutional provision under which a High Court's strength is fixed by the President 'from time to time,' rather than by a statutory ceiling as with the Supreme Court."
Article 216 provides that every High Court shall consist of a Chief Justice and such other judges as the President may from time to time deem it necessary to appoint. Unlike Article 124(1), which fixes a floor for the Supreme Court subject to amendment by ordinary statute, Article 216 leaves High Court strength to executive discretion, exercised by the President on the advice of the Council of Ministers, informed by the recommendations of the concerned Chief Justice and the CJI. The contrast between Article 124(1) and Article 216 is a standard Prelims trap and a useful analytical point in Mains answers on the differing constitutional treatment of the two tiers of the judiciary.
Prelims frequently sets Article 124(1) and Article 216 against each other; Mains uses the contrast to discuss judicial-capacity reform across both tiers.
- 1 High Court strength is fixed by executive determination 'from time to time,' not by a parliamentary statute.
- 2 Contrasts with Article 124(1), where Supreme Court strength is fixed by the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956.
- 3 High Court vacancies remain a persistent driver of pendency, parallel to Supreme Court capacity pressures.
While the Supreme Court's strength could only be raised in 2026 by Parliament amending the 1956 Act, a High Court's sanctioned strength can, under Article 216, be revised by the President without a parallel legislative amendment.
