Supreme Court’s Landmark Judgment Paves the Way for District Judiciary Reforms
In a transformative decision set to reshape India’s judicial recruitment framework, the Supreme Court of India has ruled that serving judicial officers with at least seven years of prior practice as advocates are eligible to apply for district judge posts under the quota reserved for the Bar. The judgment, hailed as a milestone, emphasizes inclusivity, merit, and efficiency in the district judiciary — the foundational tier of India’s judicial system. Five-Judge Bench Delivers Constitutionally Significant Ruling A five-judge Constitution Bench , led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Bhushan R. Gavai , and comprising Justices M.M. Sundresh, Aravind Kumar, Satish Chandra Sharma, and K. Vinod Chandran , delivered the verdict on Thursday. The court held that excluding serving judges who previously practiced law for seven years from the pool of candidates for direct recruitment would be “discriminatory” and detrimental to judicial efficiency . The bench clarified that such officers ca...