Since 2018, 108 Women, 161 Persons From SC/ST/OBC Categories & 37 From Minority Communities Appointed As HC Judges: Law Ministry

In a written reply to a question by Member of Parliament Neeraj Dangi, the Union Minister added that since 2018, 22 appointees belong to SC, 15 belong to ST, 87 belong to the OBC category, and 37 come from the Minority Communities.

Regarding the Judges of the district and subordinate courts, the data provided by the Union Law Ministry reveals that out of a total of 20,466 judges working in such courts, 3,871 judges (or 19% of the total strength) belong to the SC/ST categories.

MP Dangi had, inter alia, sought to know the percentage of Judges from the SC/ST category out of the total appointed Judges in courts operating in the country, State-wise.

In his responses, the Union Law Minister stated that the Government has been requesting the Chief Justices of High Courts to give due consideration to suitable candidates belonging to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, Minorities and Women while sending proposals for appointment of Judges, to ensure social diversity in the appointment of Judges in High Courts.

Though MP Dangi also sought information from the Government about its steps to appoint more women and SC/ST judges in High Courts, the response states that such data on judges from the district judiciary is not centrally maintained.

On the question regarding the number of Judges appointed per lakh people as per the judge-to-population ratio in the country, the Law Minister stated that as of December 31, 2024, the judge-population ratio in the country works out to be approximately 21 Judges per million population.