The Supreme Court has raised serious concerns about the increasing vacancies in High Courts across India, emphasizing the urgent need for the Central Government to clear the pending recommendations of the Collegium for judge appointments. The court highlighted that the delays in approving these recommendations are worsening the situation of pending cases, particularly in criminal appeals.
In its recent observation on May 8, a bench comprising Justice Abhay S Oka and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan stated, "The Central Government needs to act and ensure that the recommendations made by the Supreme Court collegium for judge appointments are cleared expeditiously." This remark came as the Court reviewed the alarming state of pending cases in various High Courts.
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The Court specifically pointed out the dire situation in several High Courts:
- Allahabad High Court: Only 79 judges are functioning against the sanctioned strength of 160, with over 2 lakh criminal appeals pending.
- Bombay High Court: 66 judges are active, while the sanctioned strength is 94.
- Calcutta High Court: 44 judges are functioning against the approved strength of 72.
- Delhi High Court: 41 judges are working against the sanctioned strength of 60.
Highlighting the severity of the situation, the Court noted, "As compared to the other High Courts, smaller High Courts like Delhi have huge pendency of criminal appeals. Therefore, this is an issue that will have to be handled at different levels."
The Supreme Court further cited its recent data, which revealed that 29 Collegium recommendations made since November 9, 2022, are still pending with the Central Government. These include:
- 4 recommendations from 2023.
- 13 recommendations from 2024.
- 12 recommendations from 2025.
Additionally, several reiterated proposals by the Collegium remain unaddressed by the Centre. The Court expressed hope for a swift resolution, stating, "We hope and trust that the pending proposals will be cleared by the central government at the earliest."
The observations were made during the hearing of a suo motu case addressing the broader issues related to the grant of bail. The Supreme Court's strong message underscores the urgency of ensuring adequate judicial strength in High Courts to manage the rising backlog of cases.
Case: IN RE POLICY STRATEGY FOR GRANT OF BAIL | SMW(Crl) No. 4/2021
