NEW DELHI: After a 60-days-long tussle between the Union government and the judiciary over the appointment of new judges, the Central government cleared the names of 5 judges for the Supreme Court.
Justice Pankaj Mithal, Justice Sanjay Karol, Justice Sanjay Kumar, Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah, and Justice Manoj Misra were sworn in as Supreme Court judges on February 6 by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud.
A formal notification regarding the same was released on Saturday. The Centre had assured a top court bench, which expressed serious displeasure over the delay, that the appointments will happen “very soon”.
On Saturday, President Droupadi Murmu authorised the appointment of five new Supreme Court justices.
These names had been suggested for elevation by the Supreme Court Collegium on December 13 of the previous year.
On February 3, a bench of the Supreme Court chaired by Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul issued a warning to the government, warning that things would get "uncomfortable" if the government kept putting off judicial transfers and appointments.
Justice Kaul had told Centre, “If you keep them pending, you will make us take some very, very difficult decisions.”
The number of judges on the supreme court increased from 27 to 32 with the inauguration of five new judges, leaving only two vacancies.
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