New Delhi: Nearly 100 recommendations made by various high court collegiums for appointment as high court judges are under various stages of processing, people aware of the procedure to appoint members of the higher judiciary said on Sunday. The various high court collegiums have recommended nearly 100 names for appointment as judges in at least 10 high courts, they said.
The sanctioned strength of judges of 25 high courts has increased from 906 in 2014 to 1,104 in 2022. As on May 1, there were 391 vacancies in the high courts and the working strength stood at 713. According to the procedure, a copy of the recommendation sent by the high court collegium is also sent to the Department of Justice in the Ministry of Law. The department attaches Intelligence Bureau reports of the candidates and other related details before forwarding it to the Supreme Court Collegium.
In the recent past, while various recommendations made by the SC Collegium to elevate advocates and judicial officers as HC judges have been cleared by the government, some are still pending, including those of at least three advocates from Delhi and Chennai. Several names reiterated by the top court collegium after being returned for reconsideration by the government are also pending. PTI
