New Delhi:

Former Supreme Court judge Indira Banerjee on Tuesday highlighted the “gender imbalance in the senior judiciary” and said her appointment as a Supreme Court judge in 2018 made her the eighth woman to sit on the Supreme Court in the 68 years since the Constitution came into force.

However, she expressed hope that the representation of women in senior judiciary would improve in the future.

“I am the eighth woman to be appointed as a Supreme Court judge in the 68 years since the Constitution came into force… Why is there such gender imbalance in the higher judiciary?” she said in her address at an event organized by Adhivakta Parishad to celebrate International Women’s Day. asked.

Ms. Banerjee became a Supreme Court judge on August 7, 2018. She will retire on September 23, 2022.

In her speech, she said that despite the fact that there are several states where women perform better than men in judicial competitive examinations, the situation still exists.

About 60 percent of those who successfully pass these exams are women, she said.

“So why do they do well in exams and we cannot get into the higher judiciary? It’s because of the appointment system – 33% of members are appointed from the appointed judiciary and 66% from the Bar ……”,she says.

Justice (retired) Banerjee said married women legal practitioners may have to suspend practice for a year or two due to fertility issues.

“Of course, there is also the mentality that women are expected to do only household chores at home. The man of the house is forgiven if he doesn’t see relatives, but it is expected that women are expected to participate in social activities. Go there,” she said.

“Of course you get looks like this lady, she’s so ambitious. What’s wrong with being ambitious?” she added.

“I want more women in the Supreme Court. At least 40 per cent. Even more women will occupy top positions in the senior judiciary and become the Chief Justice of India,” she said.

She said the biggest obstacle to women’s equality is social perceptions.

Delhi High Court Justice Pratibha Singh, who also spoke on the occasion, said women were more than just catalysts for social change as they played the “maximum role” in the country’s family structure.

“Women play the biggest role (in the family structure). So I believe women are more than just catalysts for social change… As we all know, in chemical reactions, the catalyst just makes the reaction happen. But I think women are the agents of social change We are more than just catalysts in this space,” she said.

Justice Singh said that while 50 to 60 per cent of law students are women, only about 15 per cent are registered as lawyers.

“I think it’s because of society, the general perception in society that female lawyers are not good housewives,” she said.

“But you know, I have to say, female litigators are actually more sensitive. They know what’s going on in the courtroom…so I do think women are compassionate, kind, and the social mentality has to change a lot in that regard, Justice Singh said during the meeting.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)