By Prarthana Mitra
Senior advocate, expert arbitrator and avid gender rights activist, Indu Malhotra becomes the first woman lawyer to be unanimously appointed to the Supreme Court directly from the Bar. She will become the second sitting woman judge in the apex court panel that currently comprises of 24 judges.
Here’s what happened
The law ministry’s approval to Malhotra’s appointment comes three months after a collegium comprising of the five senior-most judges recommended Uttarakhand Chief Justice Kurien Joseph and Malhotra’s name for the top court.
The committee decided to hold back its approval to the elevation of the 45-year-old Justice Joseph for now, in a rather unusual segregation that defers the formal decision for Joseph while clearing Malhotra’s name.
Malhotra’s contributions to legal intervention in several civic and human-rights issues are impossible to ignore. Additionally, she has a prolific repertory that consists of several instances whereby she helped secure justice to disempowered members of society.
Here’s why she deserves this
Malhotra is 61 years-old and hails from a family of barristers. She has had a career in the Supreme Court that spans over thirty years. She was the second woman to be designated as Senior Advocate by the Supreme Court in 2007 and has also appeared in various domestic and international commercial arbitrations.
Malhotra has represented several corporations like Exchange Board of India (SEBI), Delhi Development Authority (DDA), Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR), before the Supreme Court. Besides a slew of national cases, Malhotra has also successfully defended several MNC’s in high-profile international trials like ANZ Grindlays Bank, KPMG, Agilent Technologies, Medtronic, British Petroleum (BP), Pepsico India, Indian Olympic Association (IOA). She recently authored what eminent jurists call an illuminating commentary and legal classic on the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 published by Thomson Reuters.
She was also one of the members of the Vishaka Committee that deals with cases of sexual harassment at workplaces and another Supreme Court bench that oversees complaints from victims of gender crimes and discrimination. An unwavering champion for the right to dignity and equal pay for female makeup artists in the Indian film industry, Malhotra had also been appointed as amicus curiae in several cases including dowry-related harassments and restoration of Jaipur as a heritage city.
Why you should care
In a country where female super advocates are fighting for their inclusion and representation in the judiciary which remains a predominantly male space Malhotra’s achievements are indeed inspiring. Malhotra was the first woman to enjoy the title of Senior Advocate, after Leila Seth.
Justice R Banumathi was the sixth woman to be elevated as a Supreme Court judge in August 2014. The first woman to assume that position after independence was Justice Fathima Beevi in 1989. Now Justice Malhotra is poised to join Justice Banumathi as the second woman judge on the 24-judges panel, the seventh in Indian history.
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