06 October,2026 06:07 PM IST | New Delhi | mid-day online correspondent
Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant administers oath of office to newly appointed Supreme Court judge Sunita Agarwal during a swearing-in ceremony, in New Delhi, on Tuesday. PIC/PTI
Chief Justice Surya Kant on Tuesday administered the oath of office to three new judges elevated to the Supreme Court, taking the court's working strength to 37, one short of its sanctioned strength of 38, news agency PTI reported.
Justices Sunita Agarwal, Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Aparesh Kumar Singh took oath at the auditorium of the new Supreme Court block.
All Supreme Court judges, judicial officers and officials from various high courts were present at the ceremony. Family members and lawyers from the Supreme Court and other high courts also attended the occasion.
On Monday, Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal announced that the government had cleared the names of the three judges. The Supreme Court Collegium had recommended their names on September 28.
The apex court's sanctioned strength is 38 judges, including the Chief Justice of India. Its working strength, which stood at 34, has risen to 37 following the swearing-in of the three new judges. The sanctioned strength was recently increased from 34 to 38 following the Supreme Court Amendment Act, 2026.
With Justice Sunita Agarwal's appointment, the number of women judges in the Supreme Court has risen to three. She joins Justice B V Nagarathna, who has been a judge of the top court since August 31, 2021, and Justice Venkita Subramani Mohana, who was appointed on June 2, 2026.
While Justices Agarwal and Nagarathna have served in high courts, Justice Mohana was elevated directly from the Bar. She had been a senior advocate of the Supreme Court.
Justice Nagarathna is also set to become the Chief Justice of India for less than a month in 2027.
Justices Agarwal and Upadhyaya are originally from the Allahabad High Court, while Justice Singh belongs to the Jharkhand High Court. Justice Agarwal served as Chief Justice of the Gujarat High Court, Justice Upadhyaya as Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court, and Justice Singh as Chief Justice of the Telangana High Court.
Justice Sunita Agarwal was born on April 30, 1966, and enrolled as an advocate with the UP Bar Association on December 16, 1990.
After 21 years of practice, she was elevated as an additional judge of the Allahabad High Court on November 21, 2011. She was appointed a permanent judge on August 6, 2013.
After serving as a judge of the Allahabad High Court for 12 years, Justice Agarwal was appointed Chief Justice of the Gujarat High Court on July 23, 2023.
Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya was born on June 16, 1965, in Muskarai village of Uttar Pradesh's Ambedkar Nagar district. He graduated in law from Lucknow University in 1991 and enrolled as an advocate on May 11, 1991.
He was appointed chief standing counsel for Uttar Pradesh in May 2007 and continued in the post until his elevation as a judge of the Allahabad High Court.
He was appointed a puisne judge of the Allahabad High Court on November 21, 2011, and took oath as a permanent judge on August 6, 2013.
Justice Upadhyaya took oath as Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court on July 29, 2023, and was transferred as Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court on January 21, 2025.
Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh was born on July 7, 1965, and obtained his LLB degree from the University of Delhi.
He enrolled as an advocate in the Patna High Court in 1990 and practised there until 2000. He has practised in the Jharkhand High Court since 2001.
He was appointed an additional judge of the Jharkhand High Court on January 24, 2012, and was confirmed as a permanent judge on January 16, 2014.
Justice Singh served as acting Chief Justice of the Jharkhand High Court from December 20, 2022, to February 19, 2023.
He took oath as Chief Justice of the Tripura High Court on April 17, 2023, and was transferred as Chief Justice of the Telangana High Court on July 19, 2025.
(With PTI inputs)
