Strongly propose reservation for girls in legal education: CJI Ramana

Asserting for more women representation in judiciary and legal education, Chief Justice N V Ramana on Thursday said the dream of fair and equitable society, will come true when women, from all backgrounds have a say in the judicial system.

He was speaking on the occasion of ‘International Day of Women Judges’.

The CJI said there are numerous factors behind the under-representation of women in judiciary and the primary reason is deeply ingrained patriarchy in our society.

“Now we are having four women judges in the Supreme Court which is the highest ever in its history. In near future, we shall be witnessing the first ever female Chief Justice of India. But, I think, we are still far away from ensuring at least 50% representation of women in our judiciary," Justice Ramana said.

He said: “The recognition of 10th March as ‘International Day of Women Judges’ is an important step to create awareness and mobilise political will. I am a strong proponent of affirmative action. To enrich the pool of talent, I strongly propose reservation for girls in legal education. The data proves such a provision has yielded encouraging results in appointing women judicial officers at the district level”.

Maintaining that every woman’s struggle and experience is unique to herself, he said, “Growth in jurisprudence will occur only when our Bar and Benches have diverse voices. Diversity of experience brings in diversity in opinions.”

He pointed out injustices faced by women are compounded by intersectional issues of socio-economic conditions.

“Therefore, we need women from all classes and sections to find a place within the judicial system. The dream of fair and equitable society, will come true when women, from all backgrounds have a say," he said.

He said the legal profession still remains male dominated, with severe under-representation of women.

“For the High Courts, we have recommended so far 192 candidates. Out of these, 37, that is 19% were women. This is certainly an improvement over the percentage of incumbent women judges in High Courts which stands at 11.8%," he said.

He pointed out that the issues confronting women are no longer private affairs of women and one of the marks of a progressive nation is the condition of female population.

He added that the presence of women as judges and lawyers, will substantially improve the justice delivery system.

Check out latest videos from DH: