New Delhi : In a first, nine new judges, including three women, took oath of office as judges of the Supreme Court at one go. Chief Justice of India(CJI) NV Ramanna administered the oath on Tuesday.
Of the new judges, three of them – Justices Vikram Nath, BV Nagarthna and PS Narasimha – are in line to become the chief justice of India. With this, the Supreme Court strength stands at 33 including the CJI. The maximum sanctioned limit is 54.
The ceremony for the first time was held in the auditorium of the Supreme Court’s additional building complex due to Covid pandemic. Traditionally, the swearing-in is held in the CJI’s chamber.
The Supreme Court Collegium recommended names of the nine judges on August 17 to the top court following which, President Ram Nath Kovind signed warrants of their appointments as Supreme Court judges.
The 3 women judges is a first-time feature, given that the Supreme Court history of picking on them rather sparingly. The apex court has appointed only eight women judges in past 71 years since its inception in 1950. Back in 1989, Justice M Fathima Beevi was the first women judge to be appointed to Supreme Court.
Those sworn in to office today are Justices VikramNath, BV Nagaratna, PS Narishmha, Abhay Sreenivas Oka, Jitendra Kumar Maheswari, Hima Kohli, CT Ravi Kumar from Kerala High Court, MM Sudnaresh and Bela M Trivedi.
