New Delhi, October 26 — Fourteen states have so far agreed to increase the retirement age of district judicial officers from 60 to 62 years, the Supreme Court was informed on Monday, in a development the court welcomed while declining to urgently hear separate petitions filed by individual judges approaching retirement, Law Trend reported. PTI also reported the court's statement that 14 states had so far agreed to the increase.
Source: Law Trend
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V. Mohana said the matter was being addressed through discussions between the Supreme Court and state governments rather than through individual petitions, and expressed hope that the remaining states would follow, Law Trend reported.
Source: Law Trend
Court declines urgent hearing of individual pleas
Senior advocate Ranjit Kumar had sought urgent listing of the matter, pointing out that judicial officers were retiring every day after reaching the age of 60. The bench clarified that although the main petition had been listed for hearing, it was not inclined to entertain separate requests by judicial officers seeking immediate relief, Law Trend reported.
From seven consenting states to fourteen
On September 4, the Supreme Court had directed the seven states that had then consented — Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal — to amend their judicial service rules, preferably within two months, to raise the retirement age to 62, subject to the concerned High Court assessing each officer's suitability and performance, according to the court's earlier order reported by Law Trend and LiveLaw.
Source: LiveLaw (earlier order)
Under that September direction, judicial officers in the consenting states who retired on or after March 31, 2026 were to be given an opportunity to rejoin judicial service, provided they had not taken up subsequent employment. Monday's update takes the number of consenting states to fourteen, doubling the original group.
Source: Law Trend
Sources: Law Trend; PTI (via its news graphic on the Supreme Court statement); The CSR Journal law and judiciary desk; LiveLaw (September order background).