Judges Retirement Age Hike? Government Says No Such Proposal Pending

Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal on Thursday informed Rajya Sabha that there was no proposal to increase the retirement age of judges. The minister, during question hour, also informed the upper house that 297 posts of high court judges are vacant and 97 cases are under process.

"There is no such proposal pending," Meghwal told Rajya Sabha when asked whether the government intended to increase the retirement age of judges. "On the strength of judges, the minister said, "The High Court sanctioned strength is 1,122, and their working strength is 825 and vacant posts are 297.

"Of these vacant posts, 97 cases are under process and 200 such cases are there where the high courts have to send their proposals. Once they come, the government will act on them," the minister told the house.

Meghwal also said that the government has undertaken many improvements in court infrastructure, including the setting up of a National Judicial Data Grid. A committee has also been formed in this regard.

In his written reply to the starred question, the minister said, "As per information available on MIS portal of the Department of Justice, as on 27.11.2025, the sanctioned strength and vacancy in the District and Subordinate Court is 25,886 and 4,855, respectively." "Further, the sanctioned and working strength of Judicial Officers in the State of Uttar Pradesh is 3,700 and 2,645 respectively," he said.

Pendency of cases in courts arises due to several factors, which inter alia, include complexity of the facts involved, nature of evidence, co-operation of stakeholders viz. Bar, investigation agencies, witnesses and litigants besides the availability of physical infrastructure, supporting court staff and proper application of rules and procedures, he said.

"Furthermore, pendency of cases and vacancy position of judges in High Courts are not necessarily directly related. Other factors that lead to delay in disposal of cases include lack of prescribed timeframe by respective courts for disposal of various kinds of cases, frequent adjournments and lack of adequate arrangement to monitor, track and bunch cases for hearing.

"Appointment of Judges to High Courts is made under Articles 217 and 224 of the Constitution of India and according to the procedure laid down in the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) prepared in 1998 pursuant to the Supreme Court Judgment of October 6, 1993 (Second Judges case) read with their Advisory Opinion of October 28, 1998 (Third Judges case).

"As per the MoP, the responsibility for initiation of proposals for appointment of Judges in the Supreme Court vests with the Chief Justice of India, while the responsibility for initiation of proposals for appointment of Judges in the High Courts vests with the Chief Justice of the concerned High Court, in consultation with two senior-most puisne Judges of the High Court.

"As per the MoP, the High Courts are required to make recommendations at least 06 months before the occurrence of a vacancy. However, this time limit is rarely observed," the minister said in his written reply.