SC gets 5 new judges, highest in its history:Strength rises to a record 37; who are the appointees, and why does it matter?

The Supreme Court on Tuesday welcomed five new judges, taking the court’s working strength to 37, the highest in its history and just one short of the newly approved sanctioned strength of 38. Chief Justice of India Surya Kant administered the oath of office to Justices Sheel Nagu, Shree Chandrashekhar, Sanjeev Sachdeva, Arun Palli, and V Mohana at a ceremony held on the Supreme Court premises. The appointments came a day after the Centre cleared the recommendations made by the Supreme Court Collegium on May 27. SC now one judge short of full strength With the induction of 5 new judges, the SC’s strength has increased to 37 judges, including the Chief Justice of India. Last month, the Centre promulgated an ordinance increasing the sanctioned strength of the apex court from 34 to 38 judges. However, the court will soon witness two retirements. Justice Pankaj Mithal is scheduled to retire on 16 June, while Justice JK Maheshwari will retire on 28 June. Who are the 5 new SC judges? The newly appointed judges are: The appointments were approved within four days of the Collegium’s recommendation. Second woman elevated directly from the Bar A notable feature of the latest appointments is the elevation of Senior Advocate V Mohana. She has become only the second woman in India’s judicial history to be directly elevated from the Bar to the Supreme Court, after Justice Indu Malhotra in 2018. Justice Mohana will be one of only two serving women judges in the apex court. The other is Justice BV Nagarathna. Justice Nagarathna, who joined the SC in August 2021, is expected to become India’s first woman Chief Justice in September 2027. Her tenure as CJI is expected to last for a little over a month. Justice Sheel Nagu: From MP High Court to SC Born on 1 January 1965, Justice Sheel Nagu enrolled as an advocate in October 1987. He became an additional judge of the MP High Court in May 2011 and a permanent judge in May 2013. He served as Acting Chief Justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court before being appointed Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court in July 2024. Justice Nagu was also part of the SC-appointed in-house panel that examined allegations relating to the discovery of burnt cash at the residence of former Delhi HC judge Justice Yashwant Varma. Justice Shree Chandrashekhar: Served across 3 HC Born on May 25, 1965, Justice Shree Chandrashekhar completed his law degree from Delhi University’s Campus Law Centre in 1993. He was appointed an additional judge of the Jharkhand High Court in January 2013 and became a permanent judge in June 2014. After serving as Acting Chief Justice of the Jharkhand High Court, he was transferred to the Rajasthan High Court in July 2024. He later became Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court in September 2025. Justice Chandrashekhar was also a member of the three-member committee constituted by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to examine the grounds for the removal of Justice Yashwant Varma. Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva: Former Delhi HC judge Born on December 26, 1964, Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva earned his law degree from the Campus Law Centre, University of Delhi, in 1988. He enrolled with the Bar Council of Delhi the same year and was designated a senior advocate by the Delhi High Court in 2011. Justice Sachdeva became an additional judge of the Delhi High Court in April 2013 and a permanent judge in March 2015. He was transferred to the Madhya Pradesh High Court in May 2024 and became its Chief Justice in July 2025. Justice Arun Palli: Long association with Punjab Haryana HC Born on September 18, 1964, Justice Arun Palli completed his law degree from Panjab University in 1988. He was designated a senior advocate in 2007 and elevated as a judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court in December 2013. In April 2025, he took the oath as Chief Justice of the Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court. V Mohana: 40 years of legal profession Justice V. Mohana, 59, graduated from Coimbatore Law College in 1988 and has been practising law since then. She was designated a senior advocate by the Supreme Court in 2015 and built a distinguished career before her elevation to the country’s highest court. ​