Eleven names have been cleared by the Supreme Court Collegium for appointment as High Court judges: five judicial officers for the Madhya Pradesh High Court, and four advocates and two judicial officers for the Chhattisgarh High Court.
New Delhi: Two statements issued on Friday, October 30, 2026 record that the Supreme Court Collegium, meeting the same day, approved proposals to appoint five judicial officers as judges of the Madhya Pradesh High Court and six persons as judges of the Chhattisgarh High Court [Supreme Court Collegium Statements dated October 30, 2026].
Surya Kant, Chief Justice of India, heads the Collegium. The statements list only the names approved; no reasons for the selections are set out in them.
Six names for the Chhattisgarh High Court
The Chhattisgarh recommendation is a mix of four advocates and two judicial officers.
Advocates: Anand Shukla, Ratna Nidhi Pusty (also known as R.N. Pusty or Ratan Pusty), Shashank Thakur and Sourabh Sharma.
Judicial officers: Rajnish Shrivastava and Balram Prasad Verma.
“The Supreme Court Collegium, in its meeting held on 30th October 2026, has approved the proposal for appointment of the following persons, as Judges of the High Court of Chhattisgarh.”
Five district judicial officers for Madhya Pradesh
Every name on the Madhya Pradesh list comes from the State’s judicial service:
- Renuka Kanchan
- Krishnamurty Mishra
- Virendra Singh Rajput
- Mamta Jain
- Ashita Shrivastava
Three of the five recommended officers are women.
“The Supreme Court Collegium, in its meeting held on 30th October 2026, has approved the proposal for appointment of the following Judicial Officers, as Judges of the High Court of Madhya Pradesh.”
The road from recommendation to appointment
The recommendations go next to the Union Government. An appointment takes effect only when the Centre notifies it after the President’s warrant of appointment is issued, and the time taken at that stage has varied widely in past cases.
Two sources of recruitment sit side by side in the Chhattisgarh list. Article 217 of the Constitution allows appointment of advocates with ten years of practice and of persons who have held judicial office for ten years.
Vacancies and what the names change
Both High Courts carry vacancies against their sanctioned strength, and fresh appointments from the Bar and the subordinate judiciary are the main route to reducing pendency. The Madhya Pradesh list follows the Collegium’s resolutions of October 26, which had already cleared names for that court, and draws entirely on the district judiciary.
The final word on timing now rests with the Union Government.
Title: Supreme Court Collegium Statements on appointment of Judges of the High Courts of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh
Body: Supreme Court Collegium, headed by CJI Surya Kant
Date of Meeting and Statements: October 30, 2026
READ STATEMENT: MADHYA PRADESH HIGH COURT
