Supreme Court Pendency Reaches Record 83,000 Cases

Despite increasing the number of judges in the Supreme Court to its full sanctioned strength of 34, case backlogs have reached an all-time high of nearly 83,000. This issue has persisted despite various technological interventions and efforts to expedite case management. The backlog has grown significantly over the past decade, with a notable spike during the COVID-19 pandemic which disrupted judicial proceedings. Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, who took over in November 2022, inherited a backlog of 69,647 cases, which has since increased. The Supreme Court has disposed of a significant number of cases annually, yet the pendency continues to rise, suggesting that maintaining full judge strength alone is insufficient to address the problem. Solutions beyond increasing the number of judges may be necessary to effectively manage the court's workload.