Supreme Court urges states to decide on raising retirement age of judges by Sept 2

In a move to align judicial officers' retirement age with that of High Court judges, the Supreme Court on Wednesday urged states to decide by September 2 on raising the superannuation age of trial court judges from 60 to 62 years. The bench, led by Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana, dismissed concerns of financial constraints and the disparity it would create compared to government employees.

Since the early 1990s, the retirement age of judicial officers in India was increased from 58 to 60 years. However, this time, the Supreme Court suggested that it be left to the individual states to make this decision. The number of trial court judges has doubled since 1992, while the number of High Court judges has increased from 568 in 1992 to 1,114 today.

A few states have already raised the retirement age to 61, similar to benefits for government employees. The bench rejected both arguments that raising the retirement age would create disparity among government employees and cause financial hardship for the government. It argued that retaining experienced and seasoned judges would be financially beneficial for the state and the judiciary.

The bench emphasized that judicial officers are appointed by the government under a constitutional scheme and are a separate class from government employees. The Supreme Court requested state government advocates general to encourage their respective governments to enhance the retirement age of judicial officers and urged high courts to support the move by passing appropriate full-court resolutions.