The concept of the Supreme Court's judicial strength is governed by the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956, which is an Act of the Indian Parliament that determines the maximum number of judges, excluding the Chief Justice of India (CJI). The origin of this mechanism lies in Article 124(1) of the Constitution of India, which established the Supreme Court with a CJI and not more than seven other judges, but explicitly granted Parliament the power to prescribe a larger number by law. The Act was enacted on September 16, 1956, to allow the Parliament to increase the sanctioned strength through ordinary legislation, thereby solving the problem of a fixed judicial capacity despite a rising workload.
The mechanism works by Parliament amending the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956, whenever an increase in judicial strength is deemed necessary to address the growing pendency of cases. This Act is directly connected to Article 124(1), which is the foundational provision for the establishment and constitution of the Supreme Court. The increase in judge strength is a measure intended to improve the Court's capacity and ensure the timely disposal of cases.
The sanctioned strength has changed recently, with the last increase before the current one occurring in 2019, which raised the number of judges (excluding the CJI) from 30 to 33. The most recent change was initiated by the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Ordinance, 2026, promulgated on May 16, 2026, and subsequently replaced by the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Bill, 2026, passed in August 2026. This amendment increased the number of judges (excluding the CJI) from 33 to 37, making the total sanctioned strength of the Supreme Court 38 judges. The core mechanism of using a parliamentary Act to alter the number of judges, as provided for in Article 124(1), has remained the same since the Constitution's commencement.