Out of 25 High Courts 9 HCs are Unrepresented in Supreme Court
June 28, 2023
Recently, the Collegium showed a willingness to prioritize regional representation over seniority. This was seen when the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court, who ranked higher in seniority, was overlooked in favor of a judge from the High Court of Chhattisgarh, which had no representation in the Supreme Court.
As of June 2023, there are 31 sitting judges in the Supreme Court. Nine out of the 25 high courts have one judge representing them in the Supreme Court.
These include the Gauhati, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, Patna, Telangana, and Himachal Pradesh High Courts.
The Delhi and Allahabad High Courts have the highest representation in the Supreme Court, with four judges each. The Bombay and Karnataka High Courts follow with three judges each. The Punjab & Haryana, Calcutta, and Gujarat High Courts are represented by two judges each. The Madras High Court has one judge, while nine high courts have no representation in the Supreme Court.
It is worth mentioning that two sitting judges of the Supreme Court, Justice P.S. Narasimha and K.V. Viswanathan, were elevated directly from the bar. Both judges are expected to become Chief Justices in the future.