"The Supreme Court has a huge backlog of cases. In view of the ever mounting pendency of cases, the workload of judges has increased considerably. It has become necessary to ensure that the Court has full working judge strength, leaving no vacancy at any point of time," the Collegium said.
In picking up the three names, the Collegium considered the seniority of Chief Justices and senior puisne Judges in their respective parent High Courts as well as the overall seniority of the High Court Judges, the merit, performance and integrity of the judges under consideration, and the need to ensure diversity, among other things.
"After carefully evaluating the merit, integrity and competence of eligible Chief Justices and senior puisne Judges of the High Courts and also accommodating a plurality of considerations, the Collegium found the three persons to be deserving and suitable in all respects for being appointed as Judges of the Supreme Court of India," the Collegium said.
Of the three, Justice Sharma stood at serial number two in the combined all-India seniority of High Court Judges. He was appointed as a judge of the Madhya Pradesh High Court on January 18, 2008. He was elevated as Chief Justice of the High Court for the State of Telangana on October 11, 2021, and thereafter transferred to the High Court of Delhi on June 28, 2022.
Justice Masih, who belongs to a minority community, stands at serial number seven in the combined all-India seniority of High Court Judges. He was appointed as a Judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court on July 10, 2008, and elevated as Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court on May 30, 2023.
Justice Mehta stood at serial number 23 in the combined all-India seniority of High Court Judges. He was appointed as a judge of the Rajasthan High Court on May 30, 2011. Having attained seniority in his parent High Court, he was elevated as Chief Justice of the Gauhati High Court and has been serving there since February 15, 2023.