International Day of women judges

Context: Chief Justice of India stress for greater women share in judiciary

Detail:

The Chief Justice of India stressed for greater women's share in the judiciary. Underlining the need for more women representation in the profession, the CJI called for reservation of girls in legal education.
Chief Justice of India NV Ramana underlined the ‘importance of gender equality in the appointment of judges’ in his address at an online event to mark the first-ever ‘International Day of Women Judges’.

International Day of Women Judges:

In 2021, The United Nations General Assembly had announced to mark March 10 of every year as International Day of Women Judges.
The UN believes that through active participation of women on equal terms at all levels of decision making the world will be able to achieve sustainable development, peace and democracy.

Indian Perspective:

Only 4 out of the 33 judges in the Supreme Court are women, and it is the highest number of women judges in the history of the Supreme Court.
According to data from the Department of Justice website, Out of 627 judges in all High Courts, only 66 are women, just about 10% of the total working strength.
The Madras High Court has the maximum number of women judges ‘13 out of the working strength of 55’.
Statistics show that women’s representation in the judiciary has been extremely low.

Concern:

According to experts, there are hardly any women in the legal profession, and their low numbers are the reason why there are fewer women judges compared to men.
Data regarding women lawyers, pointing out that of 17 lakh advocates, only 15% are women.
Elected disciplinary bodies for lawyers, such as the State Bar councils, have only 2% women members.
The apex body of lawyers, Bar Council of India (BCI), has no woman member.
Gender disparity in the judiciary can also result in the absence of women in the collegiums of HCs as well as the top court.

Way Forward:

The presence of women as judges and lawyers, will further improve the justice delivery system.
The presence of women on the Bench and in the Bar has more than a symbolic importance. They bring to the law a different perspective, one that is built upon their experience.
They also have a more understanding of the differing impacts that certain laws may have on men and women.
The representation of women in the judicial system is significant for many reasons which ensure that the legal system is developed with society in mind. It also inspires the next generation of women judges and advocates to achieve their goals.