Rajya Sabha clears Bill to increase Supreme Court judges to 37; Opposition walks out

The Rajya Sabha on Tuesday passed the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Bill, which increases the strength of the Supreme Court from 34 to 37 judges. The Bill was passed by a voice vote after the Opposition members walked out, objecting to what they termed the government's 'hurry' in legislating the matter.

The Bill, which replaces an ordinance issued by the government in May, was earlier passed by the Lok Sabha on August 5, 2026. As it is a Money Bill, the Rajya Sabha's recommendations were not binding, and the Upper House returned it to the Lok Sabha after a discussion.

Participating in the debate, Congress MP and senior lawyer Vivek Tankha questioned the urgency behind the ordinance. 'Why was this not brought as an Act straight to Parliament, have a debate and then amend it? Who would oppose? Nobody is opposing that judges should not be increased. But is it enough? Is it radical enough to change the situation in the country? Are 95,000 cases going to be decided because of these four judges?' he asked.

When Mr. Tankha referred to the fifth anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370, Deputy Chairman Harivansh objected and asked him to stick to the subject. The Opposition members raised slogans and subsequently walked out of the House.

BJP MP Sangeeta Yadav countered that the increase in judges would help address the pendency of cases. She noted that about 64 lakh cases are pending in various courts across the country and the Narendra Modi government is committed to resolving this issue.

Trinamool Congress MP Menaka Guruswamy highlighted the vacancies and lack of diversity in the higher judiciary. 'There are 30% vacancies in all the High Courts. Women constitute only 14% of all the High Court judges! The reality is that the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes and the women together make up under 20% of the judiciary. Between 2018 to 2026, this government appointed just 3% Scheduled Caste judges, 2% Scheduled Tribe judges and 12% OBC judges,' she said.

DMK MP R. Girirajan said a single dominant caste holds a large majority of positions in the higher judiciary, with roughly 76% to 80% of High Court judges appointed in recent years belonging to upper caste general categories. Indian Union Muslim League MP Haris Beeran demanded structural changes, including a salary hike for judges and an increase in the retirement age of Supreme Court judges.

Responding to the debate, Minister of State for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal said the increase in judges is a step towards improving judicial efficiency. 'We will adopt an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mechanism using arbitration, mediation and conciliation to help reduce the pendency in cases,' he said, adding that the government is committed to working with the judiciary.

In a brief intervention, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiran Rijiju said the government only issues appointment notifications, while the names are decided by the Collegium. 'If the Collegium does not send names from SC or ST, the government on its own cannot appoint anyone from SC or ST,' he added.