Pendency in the Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of India is currently experiencing an unprecedented level of case pendency, despite efforts to mitigate this issue.
Current Statistics
- Total Pending Cases: 88,417
- Civil Cases: 69,553
- Criminal Cases: 18,864
Recent Developments
- August Case Filing: 7,080 new cases instituted.
- Case Disposal Rate in August: 5,667 cases, achieving 80.04% disposal of cases filed.
- The pendency continues to rise despite full sanctioned judicial strength of 34 judges.
Efforts to Reduce Pendency
- Chief Justice B.R. Gavai increased the number of Benches working during the summer recess to manage the case backlog.
- The summer holidays were renamed ‘partial working days’ from May 23 to July, with 21 Benches working in batches.
Historical Context
- In 2025, 52,630 cases were filed, with 46,309 disposed of (approximately 88% disposal rate).
- In 2024, the pendency reached a peak of over 82,000 cases.
Challenges and Observations
- Successive Chief Justices have maintained minimal judicial vacancies to address pendency issues.
- The backlog has been increasing steadily since the pandemic, notably from 2023 onwards.
- A November 2023 Collegium resolution highlighted the "huge workload" and the necessity of maintaining full judge strength.
Government's Role
- The government has been promptly approving Collegium recommendations for Supreme Court appointments, sometimes within 48 hours.