THE OUTGOING CHIEF JUSTICE OF INDIA (CJI), Justice B. R. Gavai, has placed in the public domain data regarding the number of recommendations made by the Collegium headed by him for appointments to the High Courts, along with the social background of the candidates concerned.
Justice Gavai has followed the practice initiated by his immediate predecessor, Justice Sanjiv Khanna, who for the first time released data on appointments of judges to the High Courts approved by the Supreme Court Collegium during his tenure as CJI (November 11, 2024, to May 13, 2025).
The data also disclosed the social background of the judges, indicating whether they belonged to Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST), Other Backward Classes (OBC), minority communities, or were women.
The data uploaded on the Supreme Court’s website by CJI Gavai shows that from May 14, 2025—the day Justice Gavai assumed office as CJI and thus became head of the Collegium—a total of 129 names were considered for appointment to the High Courts.
Of these, the Supreme Court Collegium approved only 93 names. Among the approved candidates:
11 belonged to the OBC/BC category
10 belonged to the SC category
13 belonged to minority communities
15 were women
5 were relatives of sitting or former judges
The data uploaded on the Supreme Court’s website by CJI Gavai shows that from May 14, 2025, a total of 129 names were considered for appointment to the High Courts.
Allahabad High Court
The Collegium recommended 27 names for the Allahabad High Court. Two remain unapproved by the Government: Advocates Adnan Ahmed and Jai Krishna Upadhyay.
Among the 25 appointed judges, four are sons/daughters of former Allahabad High Court judges (e.g., Justice Vivek Saran – son of former Justice Virendra Saran; Justice Vivek Kumar Singh (OBC) – son of former Justice Ved Pal; Ms Garima Prasad – daughter of former Justice Sudhir Narain Agarwal; Judicial Officer Sanjiv Kumar – son of former Justice Khem Karan).
Three belong to OBC, two to SC, and four are women judges. The sole Muslim candidate, Adnan Ahmed, was not appointed.
Andhra Pradesh High Court
Only one name was recommended, from the backward class category which the government approved.
Bombay High Court
The Collegium headed by CJI Gavai recommended 17 names. All were approved by the Government. Among the 17 appointees:
2 women
3 SC
3 OBC
2 Muslim (minority)
Notable appointees include Advocate Sushil Manohar Ghodeswar who is the son of former judge of the Bombay High Court Justice Manohar Bansiji Ghodeswar.
Interestingly, Advocate Raj Damodar Wakode, who is CJI Gavai’s nephew, has not been marked as a “relative” since the defined list of relatives as mentioned in the document released by the Supreme Court does not include nephew/niece.
Delhi High Court
Four names (all judicial officers) were recommended and cleared. Among them: 2 women (general category+ minority), 1 OBC.
Gauhati High Court
Four names recommended. All from the general category.
Himachal Pradesh High Court
Two names recommended. Both from the general category.
Madhya Pradesh High Court
Ten names recommended and cleared. One OBC, two SC. None from the women category.
Karnataka High Court
Three names recommended. One woman; one OBC and one general.
Punjab & Haryana High Court
Eleven names recommended and cleared. Five women (including 1 SC); three from minority communities; none from OBC.
Patna High Court
Two names recommended. Only one (SC) was appointed; the OBC candidate’s appointment remains pending.
Telangana High Court
Four names recommended and cleared. One from minority community.
Rajasthan High Court
Five names recommended and appointed: one SC and one woman.
Though the Supreme Court has not officially published information regarding the social background of the five judges elevated to the Supreme Court during CJI B. R. Gavai’s tenure (May 14, 2025 – November 2025), it is in the public domain that four of them belong to the General category while one hails from the OBC category.