Chapter Overview

India has a single, integrated judiciary (एकीकृत न्यायपालिका): the Supreme Court (सर्वोच्च न्यायालय) at the top, a High Court (उच्च न्यायालय) for each state or group of states, and subordinate courts below them. The same hierarchy enforces both Union and state laws, unlike the dual court system of the USA. For a Chhattisgarh aspirant the chapter has a home address too: the High Court of Chhattisgarh at Bilaspur, set up on the day the state was born.

The Constitution deals with the Supreme Court in Part V, Chapter IV (Articles 124–147) and the High Courts in Part VI, Chapter V (Articles 214–231), with subordinate courts in Articles 233–237. Prelims asks article numbers, qualifications, retirement ages and “who appoints / who removes” details. Mains asks you to evaluate the collegium, judicial activism, PIL and pendency.

What You’ll Learn

By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:

State the composition of the Supreme Court (38 judges including the CJI, as of 2026) and how its strength is changed
Trace the appointment of judges through the four Judges Cases, the collegium and the NJAC verdict (2015)
Explain the removal procedure (Art 124(4) and the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968) and the safeguards of judicial independence
Classify the Supreme Court’s jurisdictions: original (Art 131), writ (Art 32), appellate (Arts 132–136), advisory (Art 143), review and curative
Compare the Supreme Court and High Courts on qualifications, retirement, post-retirement practice and writ powers
Describe the High Court of Chhattisgarh and the subordinate judiciary in the state
Define judicial review, the basic structure doctrine, PIL, judicial activism and overreach, and write balanced Mains answers on them

Prerequisites

Fundamental Rights — especially Art 32 and the five writs, which this chapter builds on
Preamble and Salient Features of the Constitution — integrated judiciary and judicial review as salient features
Parliament — the special majority used to remove a judge

Learning Path

Follow the topics in this order:

graph TD
    A["1. Supreme Court: Composition,
Appointment and Independence
Arts 124-130, collegium, removal"] --> B["2. Supreme Court: Jurisdiction
and Powers
Arts 129-147"]
    B --> C["3. High Courts and
Subordinate Courts
Arts 214-237, Bilaspur HC"]
    C --> D["4. Judicial Review, PIL
and Judicial Activism
basic structure, overreach"]
    D --> E["5. Quick Revision
One-page sheet"]
    E --> F["Next chapter:
State Executive and Legislature"]

Topics in This Chapter

#	Topic	What it covers
1	Supreme Court: Composition, Appointment and Independence	Federal Court to Supreme Court, strength (8 in 1950, 38 from 2026), qualifications, the four Judges Cases, collegium, NJAC, removal, acting/ad hoc/retired judges, independence
2	Supreme Court: Jurisdiction and Powers	Original (131), writ (32), appellate (132–136), advisory (143), court of record (129), review (137), curative petition, Arts 139A, 141, 142, 144, 145
3	High Courts and Subordinate Courts	Arts 214–231, appointment, transfer, retirement at 62, Arts 226 and 227, common High Courts, High Court of Chhattisgarh, district courts, Lok Adalats
4	Judicial Review, PIL and Judicial Activism	Constitutional basis of judicial review, basic structure cases, PIL, activism vs restraint vs overreach, pendency and reforms
—	Quick Revision	Every article, case and number on one page

Where It Is Asked

Paper	What to expect
Prelims P-I (Part 1, India GS)	Article numbers (124, 129, 131, 136, 141, 142, 143, 214, 217, 226, 227, 231), qualifications and retirement ages, “who decides the number of judges”, removal procedure, types of jurisdiction, Judges Cases. Statement-based questions are common
Prelims P-I (Part 2, Chhattisgarh)	Seat and founding date of the High Court of Chhattisgarh; occasionally its Chief Justice (time-sensitive)
Mains P-III (GS-I), Constitution and Public Administration	Short answers (“curative petition”, “Art 142”, “collegium”) and long answers on judicial independence, collegium vs NJAC, judicial activism vs overreach, PIL, pendency and judicial reforms

Exam focus

High-yield: Art 124(4) removal and its special majority; Art 131 vs Art 32 vs Art 136; Art 143 advisory opinion is not binding; Parliament fixes the number of Supreme Court judges but the President fixes the number of High Court judges; SC judges retire at 65, HC judges at 62.
Common mistakes: calling the removal process “impeachment” in the constitutional text (the word is used only for the President, Art 61); thinking a retired HC judge cannot practise anywhere (he can, in the Supreme Court and other High Courts); placing the Chhattisgarh High Court at Raipur.
Chhattisgarh angle for Mains: High Court at Bilaspur (1 Nov 2000); the State of Chhattisgarh’s Art 131 suit against the NIA Act (2020); Nandini Sundar v. State of Chhattisgarh (2011) as an example of judicial review protecting tribal citizens.

Quick Reference: The Judiciary at a Glance

Point	Supreme Court	High Court
Articles	124–147 (Part V, Ch IV)	214–231 (Part VI, Ch V)
Strength fixed by	Parliament by law (38 incl. CJI, from 2026)	President (Art 216)
Appointed by	President (Art 124(2)), on collegium recommendation	President (Art 217), on collegium recommendation
Retirement age	65	62
Oath administered by	President or person appointed by him	Governor or person appointed by him
Removal	Art 124(4): address of both Houses by special majority	Same manner as an SC judge (Art 217(1)(b) read with 124(4))
Salaries charged on	Consolidated Fund of India	Consolidated Fund of the State (pensions on Consolidated Fund of India)
Writs	Art 32: Fundamental Rights only	Art 226: Fundamental Rights and “any other purpose”
Court of record	Art 129	Art 215
Practice after retirement	Barred in every court in India (Art 124(7))	Barred only in the same High Court (Art 220)

Start Learning

Begin with the first topic:

→ Supreme Court: Composition, Appointment and Independence