President Draupadi Murmu has approved the Union Cabinet’s decision to increase the strength of the Supreme Court from 34 to 38 judges, Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal said on Sunday.
In a post, X Meghwal said, “The President is pleased to increase the strength of the Supreme Court from 33 to 37 judges (excluding the Chief Justice of India) by promulgating the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Order, 2026, which further amended the ‘Supreme Court (Number of Judges)’ Act.”
The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on 5 May approved a proposal to introduce the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Bill, 2026 in Parliament to amend the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956 to increase the number of judges of the Supreme Court of India by 4 from the current 33 to 37 judges of India.
It was widely welcomed by members of the legal fraternity, describing it as an opportune move to address the growing pension and growing litigation before the apex court.
President of the Supreme Court Bar Association, Senior Advocate Vikas Singh, said that the demand to increase the number of Supreme Court judges has been there for a long time due to the continuous increase in filings in the apex court. He said that while the availability rate of Supreme Court judges is commendable, the high volume of cases requires more judges.
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Singh also emphasized the need for adequate infrastructure and expressed hope that a portion of the new Supreme Court building would be commissioned by the end of this year. According to him, the court can comfortably accommodate 38 judges, and after the entire new building is operational, it may require around 50 judges in the coming years.
Senior advocate Sacchin Puri, vice-president of the Delhi High Court Bar Association, called the decision a “positive and much-needed step”. He said increasing the strength of judges is the need of the day and it will help clear the backlog quickly. He added that this step will benefit both the parties to the proceedings and the legal community.
Advocate Sumit Gehlot, a Supreme Court lawyer known for his views on constitutional and judicial issues, said the move was welcome but noted that merely increasing the number of judges would not fully address the problem of dependency. Referring to a backlog of nearly 95,000 cases in the Supreme Court, he stressed the need for structural reforms and better case management systems along with increasing judicial strength.
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Eminent lawyer Hemant Shah also said that while increasing the number of judges can help reduce the backlog, it cannot be the only solution. He pointed out that several judges are set to retire in 2026, which may again affect the pendency. Shah further suggested that the government should work to reduce unnecessary litigation.
Advocate Juhi Arora Gupta, known for her legal experience and judicial practice, termed the move as a crucial step to improve judicial efficiency and ensure speedy justice. She said the growing number and complexity of cases made it difficult for the current force of judges to manage matters effectively.
However, former Union Law Secretary PK Malhotra said that merely increasing the number of judges may not bring major reforms in the judiciary. He suggested that the government should consider establishing regional appeal courts so that the Supreme Court could focus mainly on constitutional matters.
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Overall, while legal experts have largely welcomed the Centre’s decision, many believe that the increase in the number of judges must be accompanied by broader judicial reforms to effectively address delays and dependency in the justice delivery system.
Disclaimer: This story was published from the agency’s news feed without editing the text.
