President Murmu Approves Ordinance to Increase Supreme Court Judge Strength

President Droupadi Murmu has issued an ordinance to increase the number of judges in the Supreme Court by four, aiming to reduce the growing burden of pending cases. With this change, the number of Supreme Court judges, excluding the Chief Justice of India (CJI), will rise from 33 to 37. Including the CJI, the total strength of the apex court will increase from 34 to 38 judges.

The ordinance, named the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Ordinance, 2026, was issued under Article 123 of the Constitution as Parliament is currently not in session. It amends the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956.

The move comes nearly two weeks after the Union Cabinet approved the proposal and is expected to help tackle the rising number of pending cases in the Supreme Court. The court is currently dealing with more than 93,000 pending cases, with concerns that the number could soon cross one lakh.

The decision also comes at a time when vacancies and upcoming retirements of judges are creating additional pressure on the judicial system.