Supreme Court gets five new judges, strength rises to 37
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The Centre on Monday cleared the elevation of four High Court Chief Justices and senior advocate V. Mohana as judges of the Supreme Court, taking the apex court's strength to 37 judges, excluding the Chief Justice of India.
Union Minister for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal announced that President Droupadi Murmu, after consultation with the Chief Justice of India, had appointed Justices Sheel Nagu, Shree Chandrashekhar, Sanjeev Sachdeva, and Arun Palli, along with senior advocate V. Mohana, as judges of the Supreme Court.
The appointments were made following recommendations by the Supreme Court Collegium during its meetings on May 22 and May 27.
Justice Sheel Nagu, whose parent High Court is the Madhya Pradesh High Court, is currently the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. He was appointed a judge of the Madhya Pradesh High Court in May 2011 and became Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court in July 2024.
Justice Shree Chandrashekhar, whose parent High Court is the Jharkhand High Court, is the Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court. He was elevated as a judge of the Jharkhand High Court in January 2013 and assumed office as Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court in January 2025.
Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva, whose parent High Court is the Delhi High Court, was appointed an Additional Judge of the Delhi High Court in April 2013 and became a permanent judge in March 2015. He took over as Chief Justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court in July 2025.
Justice Arun Palli, whose parent High Court is the Punjab and Haryana High Court, became a judge of that court in December 2013 and was appointed Chief Justice of the Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court in April 2025.
Senior advocate V. Mohana has practised in the Supreme Court and handled several constitutional, civil, and service matters.
The appointments follow the promulgation of the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Ordinance, 2026, which increased the sanctioned strength of the apex court from 33 to 37 judges to help reduce pendency and speed up the disposal of cases.