Gender imbalance in India’s higher judiciary is stark: women constitute only 14% of High Court judges and 3% of Supreme Court judges as per the India Justice Report 2025. This gap raises questions of justice, representation and legitimacy in a constitutional democracy.
Implications of gender imbalance:
- Hampers legitimacy: A judiciary that does not reflect society undermines public confidence and weakens the claim that courts are impartial arbiters of a plural society.
- Narrower jurisprudential perspectives: Under-representation of women limits the diversity of lived experiences feeding into judgments on gender, family, labour and social rights, affecting quality of adjudication.
- Adverse impact on gender-sensitive adjudication: Cases involving sexual violence, workplace harassment, reproductive rights and family law benefit from diverse benches.
- Upward mobility deficit: High Courts/SC appointments occur typically late in the career. Women are further elevated later, reducing chances of leadership roles such as CJI.
- Inspirational deficit: Low visibility of women at the top discourages women lawyers and judicial aspirants, perpetuating the cycle of under-representation.
Reforms needed:
- Institutional Reforms
- Mandate diversity criteria in collegium resolutions.
- Transparent disclosure of appointment reasons.
- Set up All India Judicial Service (AIJS): National-level competitive exam (Article 312) ensuring inclusivity and merit.
- Pipeline Development
- Greater induction of women in High Courts.
- Encourage women from the Bar with structured mentorship & reservation in judicial services.
- Gender-Sensitive Infrastructure
- Encourage Family-friendly policies for judges and advocates. For example, 20% of district courts built separate toilets for women in 2023.
- Policy Anchoring: Adopt a judicial diversity charter as suggested by the 2nd ARC and embed constitutional morality in appointments.
Conclusion:
Bridging the gender gap is an ethical imperative and constitutional necessity. A judiciary that mirrors India’s diversity will strengthen public trust, ensure inclusivity, and deepen democratic legitimacy.
‘+1’ Value Addition:
- As per the India Justice Report 2025, only 14% HC judges are women while only 3.1% in SC.
- Lower Judiciary has 38% women judges due to open competitive exams.
- Global Comparisons:
- Canada & UK: Judicial appointments commissions institutionalise diversity.
- Nepal: Constitution mandates inclusion of women in constitutional bodies.
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