Nine Supreme Court judges take oath, after Indira Banerjee SC gets three new women judges

For the first time, the Supreme Court of India has got nine new judges at a time, including three women. All the nine judges were administered their oaths of office by Chief Justice NV Ramana on Tuesday morning. With the new swearing-ins, the strength of the Supreme Court of India now stands at 33, including the Chief Justice of India, out of the sanctioned strength of 34.

"This is for the first time in the history of the Supreme Court of India when nine judges will be taking the oath of office in one go. In another first, the venue of the ceremony is shifted to the auditorium. This is done keeping in view the need for strict adherence to COVID-19 norms," said a press release issued by the top court's public relations office.

This ends a nearly two-year-long impasse with the Supreme Court collegium sending its recommendations. Of the nine judges appointed, there are three women including Justice B V Nagarathna. Justice Nagarathna, the daughter of former CJI E S Venkataramiah, is in line to become the first woman CJI in September 2027.

With three new additions, now there will be a total of four women judges in the Supreme Court. Earlier, Justice Indira Banerjee was the only woman judge in the Supreme Court. Justice Oka will be the most senior among the nine judges.

In order of seniority, the other include - Gujarat High Court Chief Justice Vikram Nath, Sikkim High Court Chief Justice J K Maheshwari, Telangana High Court Chief Justice Hima Kohli, Karnataka High Court judge Justice B V Nagarathna, Justice C T Ravikumar of Kerala High Court, Justice M M Sundaresh of Madras High Court, Justice Bela Trivedi of Gujarat High Court, and senior advocate P S Narasimha.