Parliament Question: Elevation and Transfer of High Court Judges

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2097 TO BE ANSWERED ON FRIDAY, THE 01ST AUGUST, 2025 Elevation and Transfer of High Court Judges

2097. SHRI MATHESWARAN V S:

Will the Minister of Law and Justice be pleased to state:

(a) the list of names proposed by Supreme Court Collegium for elevation as High Court Judges pending with the Government for more than one year; and

(b) the list of names proposed by Supreme Court Collegium for transfer of High Court Judges pending with the Government for more than one year? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE; AND MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (SHRI ARJUN RAM MEGHWAL)

(a) & (b) : As on 29.07.2025, against the sanctioned strength of 1122 Judges, 779 Judges are working and 343 posts of Judges are vacant in various High Courts. Against these vacancies, 139 proposals for appointment of High Court Judges are at various stages of processing between the Government and the Supreme Court Collegium. The recommendations against 204 vacancies are yet to be received from the High Court Collegiums.

1Appointment of Judges to High Courts is made under Articles 217 and 224 of the Constitution of India and according to the procedure laid down in the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) prepared in 1998 pursuant to the Supreme Court Judgment of October 6, 1993 (Second Judges case) read with their Advisory Opinion of October 28, 1998 (Third Judges case). As per the MoP, the responsibility for initiation of proposals for appointment of Judges in the Supreme Court vests with the Chief Justice of India, while the responsibility for initiation of proposals for appointment of Judges in the High Courts vests with the Chief Justice of the concerned High Court, in consultation with two senior- most puisne Judges of the High Court. As per the MoP, the High Courts are required to make recommendations at least 06 months before the occurrence of a vacancy. However, this time limit is rarely observed. For appointments to the High Courts, the views of concerned State Government are obtained in accordance with the MoP. The recommendations also have to be considered in the light of such other reports as may be available to the Government in respect of the names under consideration. The recommendations of the High Court Collegium, the State Governments and the Government of India are then forwarded to the Supreme Court Collegium (SCC) for advice.

Appointment of Judges in the higher judiciary is a continuous, integrated and collaborative process between the executive and the judiciary. It requires consultation and approval from various Constitutional Authorities both at State and Central level. Only those persons whose names have been recommended by the SCC are appointed as Judges of the High Courts.

As per the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) for appointment and transfer of High Court Judges, the proposal for transfer of High Court Judges is initiated by the Chief Justice of India in consultation with four senior most puisne Judges of the Supreme Court. The MoP further provides that the Chief Justice of India 2is also expected to take into account the views of the Chief Justice of High Court from which the judge is to be transferred, as also the Chief Justice of the High Court to which the transfer is to be effected, besides taking into account the views of one or more Supreme Court judges who are in position to offer views.

The personal factors relating to the concerned Judge, including the Chief Justice, and his response to the proposal, including his preference of places, should invariably be taken into account by the Chief Justice of India and the first four puisne Judges of the Supreme Court before arriving at conclusion on the proposal. All transfers are to be made in public interest i.e. for promoting better administration of justice throughout the country. No timeline has been prescribed in the MoP for transfer of judges from one High Court to another.

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