As many as ten positions of judges are vacant in the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh. Against a sanctioned strength of 25, the court is currently functioning with only 15 judges.
Official data available with the news agency shows that the approved strength of judges for the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh is 25 -comprising 19 permanent judges and six additional judges.
Of them, 15 are currently in position, leaving 10 vacancies in the High Court, which has jurisdiction over both Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh Union Territories.
The shortage is expected to go up as two sitting judges - Justice Vinod Chatterji Koul and Justice Javid Iqbal Wani - will retire on January 20, 2026, and March 23, 2026, respectively. Their retirement will raise the number of vacancies to 12.
Of the judges currently in position, eight are from the Bar quota and seven from the Service quota, leaving nine and one vacancies in these respective quotas. Appointments to the High Court are made under a 66:33 quota system, with 17 judges to be drawn from the Bar and eight from the judicial service. High Court judges are appointed by the President on recommendations of the Supreme Court Collegium. The process is initiated at the High Court level, where the Chief Justice, in consultation with the two senior-most judges of the court, identifies potential candidates for elevation.