New Delhi, May 5: The Union Cabinet, chaired by Narendra Modi, on Tuesday approved a proposal to introduce the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Bill, 2026 in Parliament to increase the sanctioned strength of judges in the Supreme Court of India from 33 to 37, excluding the Chief Justice of India.
According to an official statement, the amendment seeks to revise the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956 to add four additional judges to the current sanctioned strength. The move is aimed at improving the court’s capacity to handle its caseload and facilitate more efficient disposal of cases.
Officials said the increase in judge strength is expected to enhance the functioning of the Supreme Court by enabling faster adjudication and reducing pendency. The additional expenditure on salaries, staff, and related infrastructure will be met from the Consolidated Fund of India.
The proposal draws its basis from Article 124(1) of the Constitution of India, which provides for the establishment of the Supreme Court and allows Parliament to determine the number of judges by law.
The strength of the Supreme Court has been revised multiple times since the enactment of the 1956 law, which initially capped the number of judges at 10, excluding the Chief Justice of India. Subsequent amendments increased the strength to 13 in 1960 and 17 in 1977. The number was further raised to 25 in 1986 and to 30 in 2008.
The most recent revision prior to the current proposal was made in 2019, when the sanctioned strength was increased from 30 to 33 judges. The latest amendment, if passed by Parliament, will mark the next expansion of the apex court’s bench strength.
Comments are closed.