The Supreme Court Collegium has recommended the elevation of three High Court Chief Justices, Sunita Agarwal of Gujarat, Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya of Delhi and Aparesh Kumar Singh of Telangana, as Judges of the Supreme Court.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court Collegium, at its meeting held on September 28, 2026, has recommended the elevation of three serving Chief Justices of High Courts, Justice Sunita Agarwal of the Gujarat High Court, Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya of the Delhi High Court and Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh of the Telangana High Court, as Judges of the Supreme Court [Statement of the Supreme Court Collegium dated September 28, 2026].
According to reports, the decision was taken by the Collegium comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justices Vikram Nath, B.V. Nagarathna, M.M. Sundresh and P.S. Narasimha. The statement issued after the meeting records the names of the three judges and their parent High Courts, and does not set out the reasons for the recommendation.
The recommendation
The statement lists the three recommended judges as Justice Sunita Agarwal, Chief Justice of the High Court of Gujarat, whose parent High Court is Allahabad; Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya, Chief Justice of the High Court of Delhi, whose parent High Court is also Allahabad; and Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh, Chief Justice of the High Court for the State of Telangana, whose parent High Court is Jharkhand.
The three judges
Justice Agarwal was born on April 30, 1966, and was appointed a judge of the Allahabad High Court on November 21, 2011. She has been Chief Justice of the Gujarat High Court since July 23, 2023. If she is appointed to the Supreme Court, she would retire on April 29, 2031.
Justice Upadhyaya was born on June 16, 1965, and was appointed a judge of the Allahabad High Court on November 21, 2011. He became Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court on July 29, 2023, and was transferred as Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court on January 21, 2025. If he is appointed to the Supreme Court, he would retire on June 15, 2030.
Justice Singh was born on July 7, 1965, and was appointed a judge of the Jharkhand High Court on January 24, 2012. He became Chief Justice of the Tripura High Court on April 17, 2023, and was transferred as Chief Justice of the Telangana High Court on July 19, 2025. If he is appointed to the Supreme Court, he would retire on July 6, 2030.
What happens next
The September 28 decision is a recommendation of the Collegium and not yet an appointment. It will now be processed by the Union Government under the established procedure before the appointments are formally notified.
According to reports, if the Centre notifies all three appointments, the strength of the Supreme Court will rise to 37 judges, including the CJI, and one vacancy will remain. With Justice Agarwal’s appointment, the Court would have three women judges, the others being Justice B.V. Nagarathna and Justice V. Mohana.
Why it matters
The recommendation would bring three sitting High Court Chief Justices, two from the Allahabad High Court and one from the Jharkhand High Court, to the Supreme Court, and would go a long way towards filling vacancies on its Bench. Whether the Union Government notifies all three names together is a separate step that has not yet been taken.
The Collegium’s statement records only the names and current positions of the judges. Any discussion of seniority or selection criteria in the coming days will be commentary by observers, and it should not be read as the Collegium’s own reasoning.
Statement: Supreme Court Collegium recommendation for the elevation of three High Court Chief Justices as Judges of the Supreme Court
Collegium: Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justices Vikram Nath, B.V. Nagarathna, M.M. Sundresh and P.S. Narasimha, Supreme Court of India
Date of Meeting: September 28, 2026