CJI Surya Kant Forms Four Special Benches to Exclusively Hear Supreme Court's Oldest Cases

Chief Justice of India Surya Kant has set up four special benches to clear the oldest civil and criminal disputes pending before the Supreme Court.

The initiative, reported by the Hindustan Times on Sunday, comes with a fresh roster notification effective from July 13, 2026.

This initiative aims to restore public trust in the legal system. "The judiciary’s foremost obligation is not merely to decide cases, but to decide them within a timeframe that preserves the faith of citizens in the rule of law," Kant said.

He emphasised the human cost of delays. "Every old pending matter represents a litigant who has waited years, and sometimes decades, for closure. The age of a case cannot become the reason for its continued neglect," Kant said.

Benches and Weekly Schedule

These dedicated panels will spend three working days each week focusing solely on these historic disputes. This arrangement shields them from the usual load of preliminary hearings, the Hindustan Times reported.

Two division benches headed by Justices PK Mishra and SVN Bhatti will exclusively hear the oldest civil matters on non-miscellaneous days—Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Two other division benches headed by Justices Manoj Misra and Ujjal Bhuyan will similarly hear the oldest criminal cases on those days.

The roster notification detailed the operational structure. "Two Division Benches, headed respectively by Hon’ble Mr Justice PK Mishra and Hon’ble Mr Justice SVN Bhatti, shall exclusively deal with the oldest Civil Matters on Non-Miscellaneous days...Two Division Benches, headed respectively by Hon’ble Mr Justice Manoj Misra and Hon’ble Mr Justice Ujjal Bhuyan, shall exclusively deal with the oldest Criminal Matters on Non-Miscellaneous days..." the notification stated, according to the Hindustan Times.

Targeted Docket Management Reforms

Around 800 long-pending matters have been identified for expedited disposal in the Supreme Court's first structured docket-management exercise in recent years, the Hindustan Times reported.

Each of the four panels will initially focus on nearly 200 of the oldest disputes, totaling about 800 cases, sources informed the Hindustan Times. The move marks one of the first major administrative changes introduced by Kant. It matches his goal to resolve backlogs through structured docket control instead of temporary clearance campaigns.

Resolving these historic disputes strengthens the integrity of the courts, Kant said. He added that finishing these cases honors the constitutional pledge that time will not deny justice.