Chief Justice of India Surya Kant constituted four dedicated division benches to hear the Supreme Court’s oldest pending civil and criminal matters, according to a Mint report published on July 13, 2026. The fresh roster, effective from July 13, assigns the oldest civil cases to benches headed by Justices P. K. Mishra and S. V. N. Bhatti, and the oldest criminal cases to benches headed by Justices Manoj Misra and Ujjal Bhuyan. Each bench is expected to focus on these legacy matters on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, the Court’s non-miscellaneous days. Nearly 200 matters per bench, or about 800 cases initially, were identified for focused disposal as part of a structured docket-management exercise.
Key Facts & Details
9 points- 1CJI Surya Kant constituted four special division benches for the Supreme Court’s oldest pending cases.
- 2The special roster became effective on July 13, 2026, making its implementation a fresh development for the July 13 edition.
- 3Benches headed by Justices P. K. Mishra and S. V. N. Bhatti will exclusively hear the oldest civil matters on non-miscellaneous days.
- 4Benches headed by Justices Manoj Misra and Ujjal Bhuyan will exclusively hear the oldest criminal matters on non-miscellaneous days.
- 5The dedicated hearings are scheduled for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, amounting to three working days each week.
- 6The first exercise covers nearly 200 matters for each bench, or approximately 800 old cases in total.
Deep Dive
- +The initiative separates legacy civil and criminal matters from the regular miscellaneous-hearing burden so that they receive sustained judicial time.
- +Mint reported that this was the Supreme Court’s first structured docket-management exercise in recent years and one of CJI Surya Kant’s early major administrative reforms.
- +The CJI linked timely disposal with public confidence in the justice-delivery system and said that the age of a case should not become a reason for continuing neglect.
Exam Focus
Examiners may ask the number of special benches, the civil and criminal bench heads, the effective date of the roster, the three hearing days, or the initial number of identified legacy cases.
Related Topics
Exam Relevance & Angle
The move is a testable judicial-administration reform addressing long-standing Supreme Court pendency through a dedicated roster. Aspirants should connect CJI Surya Kant, the four benches, their civil-criminal allocation, the July 13, 2026 effective date and the initial pool of about 800 cases.
Target Exams
Background & Context
The Chief Justice of India is the administrative head of the Supreme Court of India and exercises the ‘master of the roster’ function, assigning cases to benches and determining their composition. A division bench ordinarily consists of two judges, while larger benches hear questions requiring broader consideration. Supreme Court working days are commonly divided between miscellaneous days, when fresh matters and admission work dominate, and non-miscellaneous days used for regular hearings. Dedicated rosters are an administrative case-management tool; they do not change substantive rights or predetermine the outcome of the cases assigned.
Test Yourself
1 / 2How many special benches did CJI Surya Kant constitute for the Supreme Court’s oldest pending cases?
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