SC Collegium pick V Mohana elevated to Supreme Court

New Delhi: The Union Law Ministry on Monday cleared the Supreme Court Collegium’s recommendation to elevate senior advocate V Mohana as a judge of the apex court, marking a significant milestone for women in the Indian judiciary.

Mohana becomes only the second woman lawyer practising in the Supreme Court to be directly appointed as a judge. Justice Indu Malhotra was the first.

With no legal family background to support her, Mohana’s rise is a story of quiet perseverance and relentless hard work.

She belonged to the first batch of India’s five-year integrated law programme and graduated from Coimbatore Law College in 1988, when the institution functioned from rented premises with basic infrastructure.

Despite limited resources and few women classmates, she excelled in academics while participating in debates, theatre and public speaking. She supported herself by taking tuitions and lived in a working women’s hostel.

In her final year, Mohana joined the chambers of civil lawyer M Panchapakesan, where she learnt the fundamentals of litigation — maintaining case diaries, drafting pleadings and observing court proceedings.

Handwriting and rewriting plaints sharpened her drafting skills, which later became the foundation of her practice.

In 1992, she moved to New Delhi and joined the office of Indu Malhotra (who later became a Supreme Court judge) as an advocate-on-record. She handled drafting of special leave petitions, writ petitions and briefed senior counsel in key constitutional cases.

She subsequently worked with senior advocate C S Vaidyanathan, honing her research and advocacy skills in important matters such as the Amratlal Prajivandas (SAFEMA) case and proceedings related to the Jain Commission.

Over the years, she collaborated with leading lawyers including Kapil Sibal, K K Venugopal, P Chidambaram, Arun Jaitley and T R Andhyarujina.

Mohana cleared the Advocate-on-Record examination in 1996 while raising a young child and began independent practice in the Supreme Court, Delhi High Court, consumer forums and tribunals.

She represented the Government of India in constitutional, criminal, corruption, narcotics and service matters. She was designated a senior advocate by the Supreme Court in 2015.

A strong advocate for greater representation of women in the legal profession, Mohana has also been actively involved in mediation, legal aid and pro bono work.

Beyond her courtroom practice, she served as honorary editor of the Supreme Court Reports (SCR), the court’s official law journal, and was a member of the Supreme Court’s Gender Sensitization and Internal Complaints Committee. She has also served as an empanelled mediator of the apex court.

Her journey from a modest law college in Coimbatore to the highest court of the land is expected to serve as an inspiration for aspiring lawyers, particularly women. Her elevation will further strengthen gender representation on the Supreme Court bench.

Former SC Advocate on Record Association President Vipin Nair said Mohana is a shining example of how the slow and steady ones ultimately win the race.

"No frills and flamboyance but a legal practice built on deep fundamentals, Mohana symbolises success through pure hardwork from the grassroots to the very top. From advocate to AOR to senior to a Supreme Court judge. She has completed the full circle. With a tenure of 5 years, she has a great opportunity to make her mark in the judiciary," he said.