English Project

Women Jurists: A Retrospective Account

DR. B. R. AMBEDKAR NATIONAL LAW UNIVERSITY, HARYANA

Submitted By: Submitted

To:
Suhana Negi Dr. Jyoti Rana

2201105 (Assistant Professor)

 Women Jurists: A Retrospective Account

Acknowledgements

I would like to express my special thanks of gratitude to Dr. Jyoti Rana for her able guidance and
support in completing this project. I thank her for providing me with an opportunity to research
on this topic and work on this project, increasing my knowledge regarding the topic.

I would also like to express my gratitude to Honorable Vice-Chancellor Ma’am, Prof. (Dr.)
Archana Mishra, for providing me with all the requisite facilities to complete this project.

I finally extend my thanks towards my family and friends for helping and supporting me in the
completion of this project. Their help and support have made this project all the more significant.

The issue that I have taken up in this project assignment is of immense importance to the women
in specific and the nation in general. It touches upon the crucial issue of marginal presence of
women in Judiciary.

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 Women Jurists: A Retrospective Account

Index

S. No Title Pg. No.

1. Introduction 4.

2. Women in Indian Judiciary 5.

3. Women Jurists of India 6.

4. Why the Disparity? 11.

5. Significance of Women Jurists 12.

6. Conclusion 13.

7. Bibliography 14.

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 Women Jurists: A Retrospective Account

Introduction

The representation of women in all spheres of public life has long been recognized as a
prerequisite for equality. Women everywhere are breaking the proverbial glass-ceiling and entering
arenas that were earlier considered inapt for them. They are taking up diverse professions and playing
roles that, not very long ago, they were deemed unfit for. This is reassuring, even though inequalities,
at all levels of their professional lives, continue to exist.

Law as a profession is being seen as very welcoming for women. It is not uncommon to see women
lawyers in courts of law and in law firms. There has also been a steady increase in the number of girl
students in law schools. In fact, girl students have begun to outnumber boy students in many law
school classrooms. Many successful women advocates have come up in the last few decades- Indira
Jaising, Menaka Guruswamy and Karuna Nandy, to name a few.

Despite the progress made in litigation and corporate law, women remain significantly
underrepresented in decision-making positions in judiciary. In fact, a relatively small number of
women have been, or are part of, the judiciary. Particularly at higher judicial positions their numbers
are abysmally low. Women’s representation in lower judiciary is not any less disappointing. “The
situation of women lawyers in the country is not any better. Out of 1.7 million advocates
registered, only 15% are women,” former CJI N.V. Ramana had stated.

Why is there such a situation? What are the possible solutions?

There may be a long list of reasons for this situation, which has remained so for a long time, but the
solution is one- changing the patriarchal mindset.

“Women belong in all places where decisions are being made. It shouldn’t be that
women are the exception.”

- Ruth Bader Ginsberg

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 Women Jurists: A Retrospective Account

Women In Indian Judiciary

Women have been underrepresented in the Indian Judiciary for much of its history. Even
today, their representation in the Indian Judiciary is abysmally low. Notably, till now only
eleven women have been appointed as judges in the Supreme Court of India. In 1989, Justice
Fathima Beevi became the first woman judge of the Supreme Court. Also, not one of the 49
Chief Justices of India appointed till date have been women. Justice Nagarathna is expected
to become the first female Chief Justice if India, in 2027. This may be seen as a glimpse of
hope, but the fact that it took 80 years after Independence for India to get her first female CJI
remains to be a matter of concern.

Women on average constitute only around 30% of the judges in the lower judiciary . “In high
courts, the percentage of women judges is a mere 11.5%, while in the Supreme Court there are
four sitting women judges out of 33 in office”, former Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana
had pointed out while addressing an event on the occasion of the International Day of Women
Judges (10th March, 2021).1 Fewer than 8% of High Court judges in the last 25 years have been
women; more than half of India's High Courts have not had a woman Chief Justice; and just four
High Court judges elevated to the Supreme Court of India in the same time period were
women, a new dataset of High Court judges shows.2

While equality in the judiciary has been historically uneven, steps are being taken to remedy this.
Currently, four out of the 33 judges in the top court are women- Justices Indira Banerjee, Hima
Kohli, B.V. Nagarathna and Bela Trivedi. The latter three judges took oath on 31 August, 2021
giving the Supreme Court its highest number of women judges in history.

Women Jurists of India

1
United Nations General Assembly Resolution 75/274 designated 10 th March the International Day of
Women Judges in 2021.
2
India Spend, Few Women, Many Lawyers: What A New Dataset on High Court Judges Reveals,
https://www.indiaspend.com/data-gaps/few-women-many-lawyers-what-a-new-dataset-on-high-court-
judges-reveals-835627

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 Women Jurists: A Retrospective Account

Profiles of famous Women Judges of India

1. Justice Fathima Beevi

 Born on 30 April 1927, in Pathanamthitta town (Kerala).

 Enrolled as an Advocate with the Bar Council of Kerala on

14 Nov, 1950.
 Appointed as Munsiff in the Kerala Sub-ordinate Judicial
Services in 1958 and promoted as a Subordinate Judge in
1968.
 Promoted to the position of District and Sessions Judge in
1974.
 Elevated to the High Court as a Judge on 4 Aug, 1983 and
became permanent Judge of the High Court on 14 March,
1984.
 Retired as the judge of High Court on 29 April, 1989.

Justice Fathima Beevi’s name is permanently etched in history for breaking the glass-ceiling
when no one even knew it existed. She was the first woman to be appointed a Supreme Court
Justice of India. She was also the first Muslim woman in Higher Judiciary and the first woman to
become a Supreme Court Justice in an Asian country.

The significance of this achievement is best described in her own words, “I have opened the
door,” she said in an interview with the Scroll. Justice Beevi paved the way for women to pursue
careers in a male-dominated society, back when women were forbidden to take up any
profession at all.

She went on to become the Governor of Tamil Nadu in 1997, breaking yet another gender
stereotype by becoming the first female Governor of Tamil Nadu state.

She continues to inspire women across the country, especially those who seek a career in law and
aspire to reach the higher judicial posts.

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 Women Jurists: A Retrospective Account

2. Justice B. V. Nagarathna

 Born on October 30, 1962.

 Enrolled with the Bar Council of Karnataka in 1987.
 Practiced constitutional and commercial law in Bangalore
 Appointed as an additional judge in 2008.
 Elevated to the position of a permanent judge of the Karnataka
High Court two years later, on 17 Feb, 2010.
 Daughter of 19th Chief Justice of India, E. S. Venkataramiah.
 Gained public attention in 2009 after being forcibly detained
within the Karnataka High Court premises by a group of
protesting lawyers.

Justice B.V. Nagarathna is poised to become the first female Chief Justice of India in 2027. She
is the daughter of former CJI, E.S. Venkatramiah. Once she takes the top post, it will be the first
father-daughter duo to be Chief Justices of India, besides being the first father-daughter duo to be
judges of the Supreme Court. Her bag of firsts also includes being the first female judge to be
elevated from the Bar in Karnataka. She has also become the longest-serving female judge of the
state of Karnataka.

Justice Nagarathna’s term as CJI, even though a short one, will bring with it a new perspective to
the apex court and subsequently, to the Indian Judiciary. Her resolve to serve the country and her
faith in the rule of law and the Constitution of India is best mirrored by her own words- "Our
country India, or Bharat, is not just a piece in history or geography. It is a nation of over a billion
people with over a billion dreams. I have often wondered what binds us together despite the
innumerable diversities. It is my firm conviction that one of the binding factors is the Indian
Constitution — a legal system committed to rule of law and an organized hierarchy of courts
with a Supreme Court at the apex."

Justice Nagarathna has become an inspiration for a whole generation of women, aspiring to
become top judicial position-holders.

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 Women Jurists: A Retrospective Account

3. Justice Indu Malhotra

 Born on March 14, 1956 in Bengaluru.

 Enrolled as an advocate on January 12, 1983 with Bar Council
of Delhi.
 Qualified the Advocate-on-Record Examination in 1988.
 Specialized in the law of Arbitration and appeared as Counsel
in various domestic and international commercial arbitrations
both in India, and abroad.
 Served as the Standing Counsel for the State of Haryana in the
Supreme Court from 1991 to 1996.
 She was the first woman advocate to be elevated as a judge of
the Supreme Court of India directly from the bar.

Justice Indu Malhotra is a retired judge and senior counsel of the Supreme Court of India. She
was the second woman to be designated as Senior Advocate by the Supreme Court and the
seventh woman judge of the Supreme Court of India.

Justice Malhotra delivered several notable judgements including Indian Young Lawyers’
Association v. State of Kerala3, Joseph Shine v. Union of India 4and Navtej Singh
Johar & Ors. v. Union of India. 5

She wrote the sole dissenting opinion in the Sabarimala Temple Entry case. She held that the
right to equality under Article 14 does not override the fundamental right to religion under
Article 25, irrespective of whether the religious practice falling under Article 25 is rational.

She has been a member of various committees constituted by the Supreme Court from time to
time, including the Vishakha Committee and the PM Security Breach Committee.

Justice Malhotra is an inspiration not only for her fellow Indians, but also for her former
colleague Justice D. Y. Chandrachud who called her an ‘icon.'

3
2018 SCC OnLine SC 1690
4
2018 SCC OnLine SC 2
5
2018 SCC OnLine SC 10

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 Women Jurists: A Retrospective Account

4. Justice Hima Kohli

 Born on 2 Sept, 1959 in New Delhi.

 Enrolled with the Bar Council of Delhi in 1984 and started
practicing at the Courts in Delhi.
 Appointed as Standing Counsel for the New Delhi Municipal
Council at the Delhi High Court in 1999.
 Appointed as Additional Standing Counsel Civil for the
Government of NCT Delhi in 2004.
 Appointed as an additional judge in the Delhi High Court in
2006 and made permanent judge on 29 Aug, 2007.
 First woman Chief Justice of Telangana High Court.

Justice Hima Kohli is a sitting judge in the Supreme Court of India. She is one of the four
woman judges appointed to the apex court in the recent past, taking its strength to four, the
highest it has ever been, for the first time in history.

During her tenure as a judge in Delhi High Court, she wrote several remarkable orders and
judgments, including protecting the identity of juveniles accused of crime, calling for inquiries
into the detention of prisoners who had already been granted bail, provision of facilities to enable
visually-challenged people to study in government educational institutions, etc.

Justice Kohli was instrumental in passing directions to increase labs to conduct more COVID-19
tests in Delhi and to decrease the wait period for test results from three days to one day.

In Manohar Lal Sharma v. Union of India,6 the 3-judge bench consisting the then CJI Ramana,
Justice Surya Kant and Justice Hima Kohli observed regarding the role of Supreme Court of
India, “This Court has always been conscious of not entering the political thicket. However, at
the same time, it has never cowered from protecting all from the abuses of fundamental rights,”
indicating the apex court’s resolve to protect the interest of the citizens of the country.

6
2021 SCC OnLine SC 985

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 Women Jurists: A Retrospective Account

5. Justice Gyan Sudha Misra

 Born on 28 April, 1949 in Ranchi.

 Enrolled as an advocate in the Bihar State Bar Council in 1972
 Appointed a Judge of the Patna High Court in the State of Bihar
on 16 March 1994.
 Transferred to the High Court of Rajasthan State soon after.
 Elevated as Chief Justice of the Jharkhand High Court at Ranchi
in the State of Jharkhand on 13 July 2008 and functioned in that
capacity till 29 April 2010.
 Elevated as a Judge of the Supreme Court of India on 30 April
2010.

Justice Gyan Sudha Misra has passed several landmarks and notable judgments in the Supreme
Court of India including judgments on conflict of interest in the Srinivasan-BCCI matter,
landmark euthanasia judgment - Aruna Shanbaug matter, and most recently the Delhi Uphaar fire
tragedy dissenting judgment holding the management liable for colossal loss of human lives and
directing them to pay heavy compensation to be used for social causes like building trauma
center.

In Aruna Ramachandra Shanbaug v. Union of India 7, the court held that while the ‘right to life’
under Article 21 includes the ‘right to die with dignity’, it does not include the ‘right to die’ per
se. In other words, suicide is illegal and punishable, but passive euthanasia is legal under certain
circumstances. However, the court did recommend the deletion of Section 309 of the IPC,
finding it ‘anachronistic’ and underscoring that a person who attempts suicide ‘needs help rather
8
than punishment’. This judgement given by a bench consisting of Justice Misra and Justice

7
2011 SCC OnLine SC 364
8
Zia Mody, “Killing me Softly: The Euthanasia Debate in India,” in 10 Judgements That Changed India,
(New Delhi: Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd., 2013).

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Katju is considered a path-breaking judgement that changed the course of Indian Judiciary. It is
one of the most landmark judgements of Indian Judiciary.

Why the Disparity?

The absence of women in the Indian Judiciary has not only negatively affected the rule of law,
but it also has social ramifications for the future generations. It has led to inequality at all
levels of judiciary. It has also led to the public perception that women may very well become
advocates and join law firms, but are not good enough for being able to rise to top judicial
positions.

The primary reason for underrepresentation of women in judiciary is the deeply ingrained
patriarchy in society. Women often have to face hostile atmospheres within courtrooms.
Harassment, lack of respect from members of the bar and bench, the silencing of their
opinions, are just some of the many traumatic experiences often recounted by many woman
lawyers.

Gender disparity in the judiciary can also be attributed to absence of women in the collegium of
HCs as well as the top court, the panel that selects and recommends names for appointment of
judges. Lack of adequate voices in such a forum has in turn led to lack of women judges in India.
Without women representatives in the forum, patriarchal thought process, which considers
women unsuitable for decision-making positions, is more likely to prevail, hence the limited
appointments of women judges. Surprisingly, there is not a single woman member in the Bar
Council of India.

Also, since lawyers elevated from the bar to the bench form a significant proportion of judges in
the high courts and Supreme Court, it is worth noting that the number of women advocates is still
low, reducing the pool from which women judges can be selected. Out of 17 lakh advocates
enrolled with the BCI, only 15% are women.

Judicial infrastructure, or the lack of it, is another barrier to women in the profession.

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Small courtrooms which are crowded and cramped, absence of restrooms, and childcare
facilities are all barriers. Better Judicial Infrastructure may help in increasing the number of
women in the courts.

Significance of Women Jurists

The importance of the presence of women in Judiciary is immense. Women Jurists bring with
them a gendered perspective. Such a perspective helps in ensuring that judgements are being
delivered keeping in mind the society in its entirety. It is definitely valuable to have
representation of various marginalities in the judiciary because of their different lived
experiences. Diversity on the bench would definitely bring in alternative and inclusive
perspectives to statutory interpretations. Also, higher numbers, and greater visibility, of women
judges can increase the willingness of women to seek justice and enforce their rights through the
courts. Though not true in all cases, having a judge who is the same gender as litigant, can play a

By their mere presence, women judges enhance the legitimacy of the courts,
sending a powerful signal that they are open and accessible to those who seek
recourse to justice.
Justice Vanessa Ruiz
International Association of Women Judges

role in setting the litigant’s mind at ease.

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It is important to note that including women in the judiciary is not simply about ensuring
that her perception is relevant to resolving cases about women. It is much more than that. It is
about integrating the gender perspective and giving equal visibility to women.9

Inclusion of women judges in ensures a more transparent, inclusive and representative judiciary. It
also inspires the next generation of female judges and motivates them to achieve their goals.

Conclusion
The faith of the citizens of India in the Judiciary is immense. With the inclusion of more women
judges at all levels of Judiciary, this faith is only bound to increase. Women Judges add rich
experience and bring to the table a nuanced understanding of the differing impacts that certain
laws may have on both men and women. 10 This ensures that justice is delivered with all of
society in mind.

The biggest barrier to this vision is the patriarchal mindset, which has systematically ensured the
absence of women in the decision-making positions. It is this mindset that has led to the
appointment of an unsatisfying number of women judges in the country. Women have been
facing systematic prejudices in spite of acquiring sufficient skills.

Now is the time to remedy this dismal situation. What the country needs is the promotion of
education of the girl child in the first place. Further, legal education and awareness needs to be
instilled in the citizens along with the message of gender equality. One way of facilitating the
imparting of legal education to women is reserving seats for women in law colleges.

Also, it is important to ensure a safe working environment for women. This could be achieved by
ensuring proper implementation of Vishakha guidelines. Most importantly, there is a requirement
[Citeopportunities for women to
to enhance transparency in the judicial system. This will create more
prove their mettle and create a level playing field.

There is, no doubt, a long way to go when it comes to upliftment of

women in the society in general, and their rise to the top in the judiciary in
9
UNODC, The Importance of Women in the Judiciary to Integrate the Gender Perspective and Bring
Equal Visibility, https://www.unodc.org/dohadeclaration/en/news/2021/152/the-importance-of-women-
in-the-judiciary-to-integrate-the-gender-perspective-and-bring-equal-visibility-.html.

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particular. Increasing participation in the legal profession could be the first step; increasing
representation in the judiciary, the second; women’s appointment at higher judicial posts, the
third and so on. What is needed is a Revolution in the Judiciary in order to steadily progress
towards equality. After all, it takes a revolution to create a solution.

Bibliography

United Nations. “International Day of Women Judges: Justice with a gender perspective.”
Accessed October 20, 2022. https://www.un.org/en/observances/women-judges-day.

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. “The Role of Women Judges and a Gender
Perspective in Ensuring Judicial Independence and Integrity.” Accessed October 20, 2022.
https://www.unodc.org/dohadeclaration/en/news/2019/01/the-role-of-women-judges-and-a-
gender-perspective-in-ensuring-judicial-independence-and-integrity.html.

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. “Progress towards Parity: The Representation of
Women in the Judiciary.” Accessed October 22, 2022.
https://www.unodc.org/dohadeclaration/en/news/2021/04/progress-towards-parity-the-
representation-of-women-in-the-judiciary.html.

Scroll.in. “Where are the women? A study of High Court judges in India offers a number of
insights.” Accessed October 23, 2022. https://scroll.in/article/1033242/where-are-the-women-a-
study-of-high-court-judges-in-india-offers-a-number-of-insights.

The Print. “Alarming gender disparity in the judiciary: 4 women judges out of 33 in SC, 66 out
of 627 in HCs.” Accessed October 23, 2022. https://theprint.in/judiciary/alarming-gender-
disparity-in-judiciary-4-women-judges-out-of-33-in-sc-66-out-of-627-in-hcs/749684/.

10
The Hindu, CJI rues lack of women among HC judges, https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/cji-
rues-lack-of-women-among-hc-judges/article65211469.ece

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Wikipedia. “List of female judges of the Supreme Court of India.” Accessed October 23, 2022.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_female_judges_of_the_Supreme_Court_of_India.

Reader’s Digest. “M. Fathima Beevi: Lady Justice.” Accessed October 24, 2022.
https://www.readersdigest.in/culturescape/story-m.-fathima-beevi-lady-justice-127530.

The Indian Express. “Who is B.V. Nagarthana, the Judge who could become India’s first woman
CJI?” Accessed October 25, 2022. https://indianexpress.com/article/india/bv-nagarathna-india-
cji-supreme-court-7459426/.

SCC Online Blog. “A Winner All Along- Justice Indu Malhotra.” Accessed October 25, 2022.
https://www.scconline.com/blog/post/2021/03/13/a-winner-all-along-justice-indu-malhotra/.

SCC Online Blog. “Justice Hima Kohli- An Advocate for Women’s Rights and Empowerment.”
Accessed October 26, 2022. https://www.scconline.com/blog/post/2022/09/02/know-thy-judge-
justice-hima-kohli-an-advocate-for-womens-rights-and-empowerment/.

Live Law. “Supreme Imbalance: Gender Disparity in Apex Court of India.” Accessed October
26, 2022. https://www.livelaw.in/supreme-imbalance-gender-disparity-in-apex-court/.

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