Collegium & Judicial Appointments in 2026

India's higher judiciary drew a run of attention in 2026. With Parliament out of session, President Droupadi Murmu promulgated an Ordinance on 16 May 2026 lifting the Supreme Court's sanctioned strength from 33 to 37 judges (excluding the Chief Justice), the first such rise since 2019. Around it swirled older, unresolved arguments: who the collegium picks and how opaquely, why several High Courts have no voice on the top bench, and how nearly impossible it is to remove a sitting judge - dramatised when 107 Opposition MPs moved against a Madras High Court judge in late 2025.