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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
RAJYA SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 763
ANSWERED ON 05/02/2026
REGIONAL BENCHES OF SUPREME COURT
763. SHRI P. WILSON:
Will the Minister of Law and Justice be pleased to state:
(a) the details of action taken on feasibility study for establishing regional benches of
Supreme Court;
(b) the steps taken by Government to ensure social diversity and social representation in
appointment of judges in higher judiciary and number of SC, ST, OBC, general,
women and minority judges appointed in HCs and SC since 2021; and
(c) the category-wise composition of judges in the Supreme Court and High Courts as on
01.02.2026, and the vacancies of judges in each High Court, as on date?
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) to (c): Article 130 of the Constitution of India provides that the Supreme Court shall sit
in Delhi or in such other place or places as the Chief Justice of India may, with the approval
of the President, from time to time, appoint.
The Eleventh Law Commission in its 125th Report titled “The Supreme Court – A
Fresh Look”, submitted in 1988, reiterated the recommendations made by Tenth Law
Commission in its 95th Report for splitting the Supreme Court into two namely (i)
Constitutional Court at Delhi and (ii) Court of appeal or Federal Court sitting in North, South,
East, West and Central India. The Eighteenth Law Commission in its 229th Report had also
suggested that a Constitutional Bench be set up at Delhi and four Cassation Benches be set up
in the Northern region at Delhi, Southern region at Chennai/Hyderabad, Eastern region at
Kolkata and Western region at Mumbai.
1The matter was referred to the Chief Justice of India, who has informed that after
consideration of the matter, the Full Court in its meeting held on 18th February, 2010, found
no justification for setting up of benches of the Supreme Court outside Delhi.
In Writ Petition WP(C) No. 36/2016 on establishment of National Court of Appeal,
the Supreme Court vide its judgment dated 13.07.2016 deemed it proper to refer the
aforementioned issue to Constitutional Bench for authoritative pronouncement. The matter is
sub-judice in the Supreme Court.
Appointment of Judges to the Supreme Court and High Courts is made under Articles
124, 217 and 224 of the Constitution of India, which do not provide for reservation for any
caste or class of persons. Therefore, category-wise data pertaining to representation of any
caste or class of persons among the Judges of Supreme Court and the High Courts is not
centrally available. Since 2018, the recomsmendees for the post of High Court Judges are
required to provide details regarding their social background in the prescribed format
(prepared in consultation with the Supreme Court). As per the information provided by the
recommendees, out of 593 Judges appointed from 01.01.2021 till 30.01.2026, 26 belong to
SC category, 14 belong to ST category, 80 belong to OBC category and 37 belong to the
minority category. 96 women were appointed as Judges in various High Courts during the
same period.
As per the Memorandum of Procedure (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
High Courts vests with the Chief Justice of the concerned High Court. However, the
Government is committed to enhancing social diversity in judiciary and has been requesting the
Chief Justices of High Courts that while sending proposals for appointment of Judges, due
consideration be given to suitable candidates belonging to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes,
Other Backward Classes, Minorities and Women to ensure social diversity in the appointment
of Judges in High Courts. Only those persons who are recommended by the Supreme Court
Collegium, are appointed as Judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts.
The details regarding sanctioned strength, working strength and vacancies of Judges in
the High Courts, as on 30.01.2026, is at Annexure.
***
2ANNEXURE
Sanctioned strength, Working strength, Vacancies of Judges in the High Courts (As on
30.01.2026)
Sl. No. High Court(s) Sanctioned Strength Working Strength Vacancies
1 Allahabad 160 110 50
2 Andhra Pradesh 37 32 5
3 Bombay 94 80 14
4 Calcutta 72 43 29
5 Chhattisgarh 22 15 7
6 Delhi 60 44 16
7 Gauhati 30 25 5
8 Gujarat 52 35 17
9 Himachal Pradesh 17 12 5
10 J & K and Ladakh 25 14 11
11 Jharkhand 25 14 11
12 Karnataka 62 46 16
13 Kerala 47 40 7
14 Madhya Pradesh 53 42 11
15 Madras 75 53 22
16 Manipur 5 3 2
17 Meghalaya 4 4 0
18 Orissa 33 19 14
19 Patna 53 38 15
Punjab & 85 61
20 Haryana 24
21 Rajasthan 50 39 11
22 Sikkim 3 3 0
23 Telangana 42 28 14
24 Tripura 5 4 1
25 Uttarakhand 11 10 1
Total 1122 814 308
3