Five new judges appointed to Supreme Court, CJI administers oath of office

On Saturday, President Draupadi Murmu signed on warrants to appoint five new judges in Supreme Court.

The fnew judges appointed to Supreme Court took an oath on Monday. Chief Justice of India, DY Chandrachud administered oath of office to the five new judges as the Supreme Court judge.

The five newly appointed judges are: Rajasthan High Court, Chief Justice Pankaj Mithal, Patna HC Chief Justice Sanjay Karol, Manipur HC Chief Justice PV Sanjay Kumar, Patna HC judge, Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah and Allahabad HC judge, Justice Manoj Misra.

On December 13 last year, the Supreme Court Collegium recommended these names for the elevation.

An apex court bench led by Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul warned the centre saying that things would get “uncomfortable” if the delay in judicial appointments and transfers continues.  

Justice Kaul told Centre, “If you keep them pending… you will make us take some very, very difficult decisions.”

By the appointment of five new judges, the strength of Supreme Court went up from 27 to 32, leaving only two more vacancies. Supreme Court has a sanctioned strength of total 34 judges.

For filling up the remaining two vacancies, on January 31, the Supreme Court Collegium recommended two more names for elevation to the apex court. The two names are Allahabad High Court’s Justice Rajesh Bindal and Gujarat High Court Chief Justice Aravind Kumar.

This is the second time when these many judges are appointed in a single batch, after appointment of 9 Supreme Court judges on August 26, 2021.