Lok Sabha Question No. 1325 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-02-09
Subject: Vacancy in High Courts
Ministry: LAW AND JUSTICE
Asked by: Aparupa  Poddar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1325

## TO BE ANSWERED ON FRIDAY, THE 09.02.2024

## Vacancy in High Courts

## 1325. SHRIMATI APARUPA PODDAR:

Will the Minister of LAW AND JUSTICE be pleased to state:

- (a) the number of vacancies of judges in High Courts, State-wise;
- (b) the number of SC, ST, OBC and EWS related vacancies of judges in High Courts, District Courts and Subordinate Courts in last five years, year-wise;
- (c) whether  it  is  a  fact  that  5,408  positions  remained  vacant  in  District  and Subordinate Courts, if so, the details thereof, State-wise; and
- (d) the details of pending cases in High Courts, District Courts and Subordinate
- Courts in 2023, State-wise?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE; MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS; AND MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF CULTURE

## (SHRI ARJUN RAM MEGHWAL)

- (a) to (d): A statement showing sanctioned strength, number of working judges and vacancies in High Courts, State-wise may be seen at Annexure-I.

Appointment of Judges of the High Courts is made under Articles  217 and 224 of the Constitution of India, which do not provide for reservation for any  caste  or  class  of  persons.  Therefore,  category-wise  data  pertaining  to representation  of  OBCs,  SCs,  STs  and  Minorities  among  the  Judges  of  High Courts are not maintained centrally. There are no vacancies earmarked for any caste or class of persons in Higher Judiciary.

However,  the  data  regarding  social  diversity  in  High  Court  Judges  has been institutionalized as per the revised Annexure (revised in 2018) wherein the recommendees have to provide details regarding their social background in the prescribed  format  (prepared  in  consultation  with  the  Supreme  Court).  Hence, data since 2018 has been maintained. Out of 653 High Court Judges appointed since 2018, 20Judges belong to SC category, 12 Judges belong to ST category and 77 Judges belong to OBC category.

As  regards  the  number  of  SC,ST,OBC  and  EWS  related  vacancies of judges in District Courts and Subordinate Courts, the data is not maintained by  the  Department.  The Central  Government  has  no  role  in  the  selection, recruitment and appointment of judicial officers in District/Subordinate judiciary level, as  per  the  provisions  under  the  Constitution. As  per  the Constitutional  framework,  in  exercise  of  powers  conferred  under  proviso  to Article 309 read with Articles 233 and 234 of the Constitution, the respective State  Government  in  consultation  with  the  High  Court  frames  the  rules  and regulations  regarding  the  issues  of  appointment  and  recruitment  of  Judicial Officers  in  the  respective  State  Judicial  Service.  Thus,  the  selection  and appointment  of  judicial  officers  in  the  Subordinate/District  Courts  is  the responsibility  of  the  High  Courts  and  State  Governments  concerned.  In  some States, the respective High Courts undertake the recruitment process, whereas in other  States,  the  High  Courts  does  it  in  consultation  with  the  State  Public Service Commissions.

As  on  05.02.2024,  there  are  5,342  vacant  positions  in  the  District  and Subordinate  Courts.  The  State-wise  details  of  vacant  positions  of  judicial officers in District and Subordinate Courts are at ANNEXURE-II.

The  details  of  pending  cases  in  High  Courts  and  District  Courts  and Subordinate Courts, as on 31.12.2023, State-wise are at ANNEXURE-III & IV respectively.

***

## Annexure-I

Statement showing Sanctioned strength, Working Strength and Vacancies of Judges in the Supreme Court of India and the High Courts.

Sanctioned strength

Working strength

Vacancies

| A.   | Supreme Court    | 34   | 34   | 34    | 34   | 34   | 34    | 0    | 0    | 0     |
|------|------------------|------|------|-------|------|------|-------|------|------|-------|
| B.   | High Court       | Pmt. | Addl | Total | Pmt. | Addl | Total | Pmt. | Addl | Total |
| 1    | Allahabad        | 119  | 41   | 160   | 75   | 14   | 89    | 44   | 27   | 71    |
| 2    | Andhra Pradesh   | 28   | 9    | 37    | 22   | 8    | 30    | 6    | 1    | 7     |
| 3    | Bombay           | 71   | 23   | 94    | 41   | 28   | 69    | 30   | -5   | 25    |
| 4    | Calcutta         | 54   | 18   | 72    | 37   | 14   | 51    | 17   | 4    | 21    |
| 5    | Chhattisgarh     | 17   | 5    | 22    | 10   | 6    | 16    | 7    | -1   | 6     |
| 6    | Delhi            | 46   | 14   | 60    | 37   | 5    | 42    | 9    | 9    | 18    |
| 7    | Gauhati          | 22   | 8    | 30    | 16   | 7    | 23    | 6    | 1    | 7     |
| 8    | Gujarat          | 39   | 13   | 52    | 31   | 0    | 31    | 8    | 13   | 21    |
| 9    | Himachal Pradesh | 13   | 4    | 17    | 12   | 0    | 12    | 1    | 4    | 5     |
| 10   | J &Kand Ladakh   | 13   | 4    | 17    | 13   | 2    | 15    | 0    | 2    | 2     |
| 11   | Jharkhand        | 20   | 5    | 25    | 17   | 1    | 18    | 3    | 4    | 7     |
| 12   | Karnataka        | 47   | 15   | 62    | 39   | 12   | 51    | 8    | 3    | 11    |
| 13   | Kerala           | 35   | 12   | 47    | 32   | 4    | 36    | 3    | 8    | 11    |
| 14   | Madhya Pradesh   | 39   | 14   | 53    | 39   | 1    | 40    | 0    | 13   | 13    |
| 15   | Madras           | 56   | 19   | 75    | 54   | 13   | 67    | 2    | 6    | 8     |
| 16   | Manipur          | 4    | 1    | 5     | 4    | 0    | 4     | 0    | 1    | 1     |
| 17   | Meghalaya        | 3    | 1    | 4     | 2    | 1    | 3     | 1    | 0    | 1     |
| 18   | Orissa           | 24   | 9    | 33    | 20   | 0    | 20    | 4    | 9    | 13    |
| 19   | Patna            | 40   | 13   | 53    | 35   | 0    | 35    | 5    | 13   | 18    |
| 20   | Punjab &Haryana  | 64   | 21   | 85    | 40   | 15   | 55    | 24   | 6    | 30    |
| 21   | Rajasthan        | 38   | 12   | 50    | 34   | 0    | 34    | 4    | 12   | 16    |
| 22   | Sikkim           | 3    | 0    | 3     | 3    | 0    | 3     | 0    | 0    | 0     |
| 23   | Telangana        | 32   | 10   | 42    | 21   | 5    | 26    | 11   | 5    | 16    |
| 24   | Tripura          | 4    | 1    | 5     | 4    | 1    | 5     | 0    | 0    | 0     |
| 25   | Uttarakhand      | 9    | 2    | 11    | 7    | 0    | 7     | 2    | 2    | 4     |
|      | Total            | 840  | 274  | 1114  | 645  | 137  | 782   | 195  | 137  | 332   |

## Vacant Positions of Judicial Officers (as on 05.02.2024).

|   Sl. No. | States &UTs         |   Vacancy |
|-----------|---------------------|-----------|
|         1 | Andaman and Nicobar |         0 |
|         2 | Andhra Pradesh      |        84 |
|         3 | Arunachal Pradesh   |        10 |
|         4 | Assam               |        46 |
|         5 | Bihar               |       467 |
|         6 | Chandigarh          |         1 |
|         7 | Chhattisgarh        |       139 |
|         8 | D &NHaveli          |         1 |
|         9 | Daman &Diu          |         0 |
|        10 | Delhi               |        89 |
|        11 | Goa                 |        10 |
|        12 | Gujarat             |       535 |
|        13 | Haryana             |       208 |
|        14 | Himachal Pradesh    |        22 |
|        15 | Jammu and Kashmir   |        94 |
|        16 | Jharkhand           |       182 |
|        17 | Karnataka           |       229 |
|        18 | Kerala              |        91 |
|        19 | Ladakh              |         7 |
|        20 | Lakshadweep         |         1 |
|        21 | Madhya Pradesh      |       295 |
|        22 | Maharashtra         |       250 |
|        23 | Manipur             |        10 |
|        24 | Meghalaya           |        42 |
|        25 | Mizoram             |        28 |
|        26 | Nagaland            |        10 |
|        27 | Odisha              |       216 |
|        28 | Puducherry          |        19 |
|        29 | Punjab              |       112 |
|        30 | Rajasthan           |       300 |

## ANNEXURE II

| 31    | Sikkim        |   12 |
|-------|---------------|------|
| 32    | Tamil Nadu    |  334 |
| 33    | Telangana     |  115 |
| 34    | Tripura       |   21 |
| 35    | Uttar Pradesh | 1250 |
| 36    | Uttarakhand   |   29 |
| 37    | West Bengal   |   96 |
| TOTAL | TOTAL         | 5342 |

## Pending Cases in High Courts (as on 31.12.2023).

| Pendency in High Courts   | Pendency in High Courts           |                                          |    |
|---------------------------|-----------------------------------|------------------------------------------|----|
| Sl.No                     | High Court                        | Pendency of Cases as 31.12.2023 (Total). | on |
| 1                         | Allahabad High Court              | 1076554                                  |    |
| 2                         | Bombay High Court                 | 712430                                   |    |
| 3                         | Calcutta High Court               | 195379                                   |    |
| 4                         | Gauhati High Court                | 62441                                    |    |
| 5                         | High Court for State of Telangana | 248387                                   |    |
| 6                         | High Court of Andhra Pradesh      | 249643                                   |    |
| 7                         | High Court Of Chhattisgarh        | 90463                                    |    |
| 8                         | High Court of Delhi               | 128122                                   |    |
| 9                         | High Court of Gujarat             | 169048                                   |    |
| 10                        | High Court of Himachal Pradesh    | 99545                                    |    |
| 11                        | High Court of Jammu and Kashmir   | 44243                                    |    |
| 12                        | High Court of Jharkhand           | 85790                                    |    |
| 13                        | High Court of Karnataka           | 288889                                   |    |
| 14                        | High Court of Kerala              | 255278                                   |    |
| 15                        | High Court of Madhya Pradesh      | 446348                                   |    |
| 16                        | High Court of Manipur             | 4631                                     |    |
| 17                        | High Court of Meghalaya           | 1125                                     |    |
| 18                        | High Court of Punjab and Haryana  | 441070                                   |    |
| 19                        | High Court Of Rajasthan           | 672193                                   |    |
| 20                        | High Court of Sikkim              | 179                                      |    |
| 21                        | High Court of Tripura             | 1275                                     |    |
| 22                        | High Court of Uttarakhand         | 50532                                    |    |

| 23    | Madras High Court   |   542700 |
|-------|---------------------|----------|
| 24    | Orissa High Court   |   148447 |
| 25    | Patna High Court    |   197663 |
| Total | Total               |  6212375 |

Source:  NJDG

## State-wise,  Pending  Cases  in  District  and  Subordinate  Courts  (as  on 31.12.2023)

| Pendency in District Courts as on 31.12.2023   | Pendency in District Courts as on 31.12.2023   | Pendency in District Courts as on 31.12.2023   |
|------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------|
| Sl.No                                          | States                                         | Total                                          |
| 1                                              | Andhra Pradesh                                 | 864945                                         |
| 2                                              | Telangana                                      | 917595                                         |
| 3                                              | Andman&Nicobar                                 | 8767                                           |
| 4                                              | Auranchal Pradesh                              | 4149                                           |
| 5                                              | Assam                                          | 453536                                         |
| 6                                              | Bihar                                          | 3588892                                        |
| 7                                              | Chandigarh                                     | 148414                                         |
| 8                                              | Chattisgarh                                    | 410579                                         |
| 9                                              | Delhi                                          | 1224273                                        |
| 10                                             | Diu and Daman                                  | 3073                                           |
| 11                                             | DNH at Silvassa                                | 4251                                           |
| 12                                             | Goa                                            | 57178                                          |
| 13                                             | Gujarat                                        | 1589468                                        |
| 14                                             | Haryana                                        | 1433041                                        |
| 15                                             | Himachal Pradesh                               | 573610                                         |
| 16                                             | Jammu& Kashmir                                 | 290206                                         |
| 17                                             | Jharkhand                                      | 542976                                         |
| 18                                             | Karnataka                                      | 1941571                                        |
| 19                                             | Kerala                                         | 1830917                                        |
| 20                                             | Ladakh                                         | 1328                                           |

| 21    | Madhya Pradesh     |   2004570 |
|-------|--------------------|-----------|
| 22    | Maharshtra         |   5200315 |
| 23    | Manipur            |     13070 |
| 24    | Meghalya           |     16214 |
| 25    | Mizoram            |      5566 |
| 26    | Nagaland           |      2834 |
| 27    | Orissa             |   1612195 |
| 28    | Puducherry         |     34079 |
| 29    | Punjab             |    851182 |
| 30    | Rajasthan          |   2310988 |
| 31    | Sikkim             |      1664 |
| 32    | Tamil Nadu         |   1449005 |
| 33    | Tripura            |     45379 |
| 34    | U.T of Lakshadweep |         0 |
| 35    | Uttar Pradesh      |  11626796 |
| 36    | Uttrakhand         |    358032 |
| 37    | West Bengal        |   2988822 |
| Total | Total              |  44409480 |

Source : NJDG