The Supreme Court of India grew by three judges on Monday as the Centre formally notified the appointment of three high court chief justices, taking the apex court's working strength to 37 against a sanctioned strength of 38.
The newly appointed judges are Justice Sunita Agarwal, the Chief Justice of the Gujarat High Court; Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya, the Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court; and Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh, the Chief Justice of the Telangana High Court. Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal announced the appointments after the government issued the official notification.
Collegium's recommendation clears in a week
The notification follows a Supreme Court Collegium recommendation made on September 28, when the collegium led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant proposed the three chief justices for elevation. The government completed the appointment process within days, moving the court to within one seat of full strength.
The sanctioned strength of the Supreme Court was raised from 34 to 38 through the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Act, 2026, which received presidential assent in August. This is the second round of appointments under the expanded bench.
Who the three judges are
Justice Sunita Agarwal becomes the third woman judge currently serving on the Supreme Court bench. She began as a judge of the Allahabad High Court in November 2011 and became Chief Justice of the Gujarat High Court in July 2023.
Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya has headed the Delhi High Court since January 2025, after serving as Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court from July 2023. Like Justice Agarwal, he was first appointed a judge of the Allahabad High Court in November 2011.
Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh, formerly of the Patna and Jharkhand high courts, served as Chief Justice of the Tripura High Court from April 2023 before moving to Telangana in July 2025.
The additions are expected to help the Chief Justice form more benches and ease pressure on the court's pendency, which runs into tens of thousands of cases.
Sources: Bar and Bench: Central government notifies appointment of 3 new Supreme Court judges | The News Mill: Centre appoints three High Court Chief Justices as Supreme Court judges | Indian Express: SC Collegium recommends 3 CJs of high courts as apex court judges
The newly appointed judges are Justice Sunita Agarwal, the Chief Justice of the Gujarat High Court; Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya, the Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court; and Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh, the Chief Justice of the Telangana High Court. Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal announced the appointments after the government issued the official notification.
Collegium's recommendation clears in a week
The notification follows a Supreme Court Collegium recommendation made on September 28, when the collegium led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant proposed the three chief justices for elevation. The government completed the appointment process within days, moving the court to within one seat of full strength.
The sanctioned strength of the Supreme Court was raised from 34 to 38 through the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Act, 2026, which received presidential assent in August. This is the second round of appointments under the expanded bench.
Who the three judges are
Justice Sunita Agarwal becomes the third woman judge currently serving on the Supreme Court bench. She began as a judge of the Allahabad High Court in November 2011 and became Chief Justice of the Gujarat High Court in July 2023.
Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya has headed the Delhi High Court since January 2025, after serving as Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court from July 2023. Like Justice Agarwal, he was first appointed a judge of the Allahabad High Court in November 2011.
Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh, formerly of the Patna and Jharkhand high courts, served as Chief Justice of the Tripura High Court from April 2023 before moving to Telangana in July 2025.
The additions are expected to help the Chief Justice form more benches and ease pressure on the court's pendency, which runs into tens of thousands of cases.
Sources: Bar and Bench: Central government notifies appointment of 3 new Supreme Court judges | The News Mill: Centre appoints three High Court Chief Justices as Supreme Court judges | Indian Express: SC Collegium recommends 3 CJs of high courts as apex court judges
