Next on Collegium agenda: Filling up vacancies in Supreme Court

The Supreme Court Collegium's main focus in the upcoming week is to fill vacancies in the top court, following the appointment of regular Chief Justices in all 25 High Courts across the country. The Collegium's attention now shifts to the four open seats at the Supreme Court, which were created by the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Ordinance, 2026, raising the court's sanctioned strength in May.

Currently, the Supreme Court has 34 judges, four short of its sanctioned strength, even after five elevations in June. Justice Satish Chandra Sharma, who will retire on November 29, will create the fifth vacancy.

The Collegium considers gender representation when selecting new CJI candidates. Currently, the only female judges among the sitting High Court Chief Justices are Justices Sunita Agarwal, Lisa Gill, and Revati Mohite Dere, who are the Chief Justices of the Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, and Meghalaya High Courts, respectively. Justice Agarwal and Justice Dere are set to retire in April 2028 and April 2027, while Justice Gill will retire in November 2028.

To add potential successors to the Supreme Court line of succession, the Collegium will likely recommend candidates who are not at the top of the seniority list. To be considered for the CJI position, candidates must be willing to serve on the Supreme Court even after the next CJI's tenure ends in May 2033. Only three sitting High Court Chief Justices meet this criterion: Justices Pushpendra Singh Bhati, Alpesh Yeshvant Kogje, and Ashwani Kumar Mishra, who were appointed last week.