New Delhi: Sanctioned strength of Judges in Gujarat High Court is 52, against which the working strength is 28 while 24 posts are vacant. In last four years, the Gujarat High Court has got 12 new Judges of whom 5 were appointed in year 2016, none in 2017, 4 in 2018 and 3 in 2019 upto 20th November.

These details were shared by minister of Law and Justice, Ravi Shankar Prasad in Lok Sabha in written reply.

The minister also stated: As per the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP), initiation of proposal for appointment of Judges in the Supreme Court vests with the Chief Justice of India, while initiation of proposals for appointment of Judges in the High Courts vests with the Chief Justice of the concerned High Courtwho may initiate the proposal for appointment of a Judge in the High Court at least sixmonths prior to the occurrence of vacancies. However, this timeline is rarely adhered to. Filling up of vacancies in the Supreme Court and the High courts is a continuous, integrated and collaborative process, between theExecutive and the Judiciary. It requires consultation and approval from various Constitutional Authorities. Hence, time frame to appoint Judges cannot be indicated. While every effort is made to fill up the existing vacancies expeditiously, vacancies in High Courts do keep on arising on account of retirement, resignation or elevation of Judges and increase in Judge Strength. As per the Constitutional framework, the selection and appointment of Judges in subordinate Courts is the responsibility of the concerned High Courts and State Governments.