Ordinance increases number of SC judges from 34 to 38

18 MAY 2026

President Droupadi Murmu has promulgated an ordinance on 16^th May 2026, increasing the number of judges in the Supreme Court from 33 to 37 — excluding the Chief Justice of India.
Earlier in 2019, the sanctioned strength was raised from 30 to 33.
The Framers of the Constitution had originally in Article 124(1) envisaged a Supreme Court consisting of the Chief Justice of India and “not more than seven judges” until “Parliament by law prescribes a larger number”,
The May 16 Gazette notification says “Parliament is not in session and the President is satisfied that the circumstances exist which render it necessary for her to take immediate action [issue of ordinance]”.
The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Ordinance, 2026, has been promulgated in accordance with the powers of the President under Article 123 of the Constitution.
The ordinance will be placed in both Houses of Parliament when it convenes. It will cease to operate if six weeks expire without any resolution passed on it after the reassembly of Parliament or if resolutions are passed in both Houses of Parliament disapproving the ordinance.
The President can withdraw the ordinance at any time.
The move is seen as a step towards tiding over the continuing crisis of pendency plaguing the court for years now, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic, when the facility of e-filing of cases caught on.
The current backlog is over 93,000 cases.