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Women lawyers cite domestic and parental responsibilities to refuse judgeship: CJI SA Bobde
"The time has come for a woman to shine. The Chief Justice of India. On the other hand, the Chief Justice of the High Courts said that when lawyers are asked to serve on the bench, they refuse because they have domestic responsibilities "CJI SA Bobde said.
On Thursday, Supreme Court Chief Justice SA Bobde said that High Court Chief Justices have often advised him that women lawyers have refused to serve as judges due to domestic and parental responsibilities.
The Chief Justice of India has stated that it is past time for a woman to hold the office of Chief Justice of India, but the Collegium has had trouble in the past because women lawyers have refused to consider a position as a judge.
"The time has come for India to have a female Chief Justice. (However,) the Chief Justice of the High Courts claimed that when lawyers are asked to sit on the bench, they refuse, claiming that they have domestic responsibilities or that their children are in class 11 or 12, and that this information has been passed on to me."
The Bench, which also included Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Surya Kant, was deliberating on a petition challenging the election of High Court judges.
In this regard, the Supreme Court Women Lawyers Association (SCWLA) has petitioned the Supreme Court to consider urgently elevating experienced female Supreme Court lawyers to High Court judges as a way of raising the number of women judges.
As the CJI pointed out in refusing to give a notice in the case, the Court argued that it "has the best interests of women at heart," but that "we need only eligible candidates."
The names of ten judges recommended by the Supreme Court collegium for high courts and pending with the Law Ministry will be transmitted to the top court within three months, Attorney General KK Venugopal told the Bench.
The Supreme Court then ordered the Central government to include a timeline for responding to Supreme Court collegium recommendations, especially with regard to Department of Justice clearance.
