Former SCBA president and senior lawyer Vikas Singh has penned a letter to Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, emphasizing the  the need for allocating one-third of judicial positions in the higher judiciary to women.

Three-time president of the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) Vikas Singh noted that the high courts of Patna, Uttarakhand, Tripura, Meghalaya, and Manipur, there is a notable absence of female judges, while the remaining 20 high courts collectively comprise 103 female judges in contrast to 670 male judges.

He made reference to the recent passage of the 128th Constitution Amendment Bill in Parliament, which advocates for reserving one-third of the seats in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies for women.

Further, he urged the CJI to bring in a credible system for appointment of judges to high courts and the Supreme Court wherein one third of the vacancies are filled by women.

“With a historic unanimous passing of the ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam’ by Parliament, it is indeed a moment for the judiciary to also rise to the occasion to ensure that India finally moves towards an era of women-led development,” Singh said in the letter which was also sent to the Chief Justices of High Courts.

“Sir, you will appreciate that the Higher Judiciary is the equally placed forum wherein similar reforms ought to be brought in to ensure a significant participation of women therein,” the letter said.

“With more than 76 years of Independent India, it is disheartening that only 11 Women have  succeeded to have been elevated as a Supreme Court Judge out of the 270 Judges appointed to  this esteemed institution, which barely accounts for just 4 percent of the total appointees till  date,” Singh said in his letter to the CJI.