Centre Appoints 5 Judges to Supreme Court; Strength Rises to 37

The Union government on Monday (June 1, 2026) approved the appointment of five judges to the Supreme Court, taking the court’s effective strength to 37 against the revised sanctioned strength of 38.

Minister of State for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal announced the appointments through social media platform X and stated that the President had approved the appointments under Article 124(2) of the Constitution.

The judges appointed to the Supreme Court are:

1. Justice Sheel Nagu, Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
2. Justice Shree Chandrashekhar, Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court.
3. Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva, Chief Justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court.
4. Justice Arun Palli, Chief Justice of the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
5. Senior Advocate V Mohana.

The appointments came following the recommendation of the Supreme Court Collegium made on May 27, 2026.

Notably, the development comes weeks after the Centre increased the sanctioned strength of the Supreme Court from 34 to 38 judges through the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Ordinance, 2026, notified on May 5, 2026.