May 2026: Pendency falls for the second consecutive month

The Supreme Court ended May 2026 with 92,429 pending cases, a decrease of 394 cases from April’s figure of 92,823. The decline comes as the Court entered its six-week Partial Working Days period on 1 June 2026 after an eventful first half of the year.

The Court’s strength saw a historic expansion during this period. Five new judges were appointed at the beginning of June, increasing the Court’s working strength to 37 judges, one short of its sanctioned strength of 38.

Another drop in pendency 

Figure 1 shows the Court’s monthly pendency figures from December 2025 to May 2026. After decline in April, pendency continued its downward trend in May.

Pendency dropped twice in the first half of 2026, once in February by 826 cases and then in April by 320 cases. May marked a further reduction of 394 cases from April and left with 714 fewer pending matters than it had in March. 

Notably, the Court functioned at a sitting strength of 32 judges in May. At the time, sanctioned strength was at 34 judges, before an Ordinance promulgated halfway through the month increased it to 38.

A significant portion of judicial time during the first half of 2026 was devoted to Constitution Bench matters. Nine judges were occupied in hearing the Sabarimala Reference for sixteen days. 

As the Court begins its partial working days in June, pendency is likely to increase as it will function with a reduced roster. Historically, pendency tends to increase during the vacation/partial working days period.

Pendency in May since 2020

Figure 2 tracks pendency figures in the month of May between 2020 and 2026.

May 2026 recorded the highest pendency figure during this timeline at 92,429 pending cases. The figure is 10,695 cases more than May 2025 and 10,049 higher than the previous peak recorded in May 2024.

While pendency declined in May 2026, the overall caseload remained substantially higher than the previous years. Between May 2020 and May 2026, the Court’s pending caseload increased by 31,801 cases, growing from 60,628 to 92,429.

Note: Data up to May 2023 was sourced from the Indian Judiciary Annual Reports released by the Supreme Court. Figures for 2025 and 2026 were collected from the National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG).

Constitution Bench pendency

Figure 3 illustrates the number of Constitution Bench matters pending before the Supreme Court. Main matters are shown on the left, while connected matters are shown on the right.

As of May 2026, 29 Constitution Bench matters remain pending before the Supreme Court. This figure has remained unchanged since February. The corresponding figure for May 2025 was 28.

Several of these matters moved substantially closer to resolution during the first half of the year. Judgement remains reserved in the only two pending nine judge Bench matters: Definition of Industry and the Sabarimala Reference. Once decided, these cases are expected to clear a substantial number of connected matters from the Constitution Bench docket.

7,848 institutions and 8,151 disposals

Figure 4 shows institution and disposal figures for May 2026. Institutions represent fresh filings before the Court, while disposals represent matters decided, dismissed or otherwise concluded.

The rise in pendency comes despite a strong disposal rate through May. The Court disposed of more cases than it received during the month. Yet, the overall docket continued to expand.

The Court received 7,848 fresh filings and disposed of 8,151 cases during May. Disposals exceeded institutions by 303 cases. Both institutions and disposals increased compared to April. Fresh filings rose from 7,256 to 7,848, while disposals increased from 7,841 to 8,151. 

Note: For our pendency, institution and disposal articles, we primarily rely on data published on the NJDG. The figures used in this article reflect the updated data available on both platforms as of 9 June 2026.