Senior Advocate Indira Jaising has raised concerns over sexual harassment faced by women judges within the judiciary, describing it as a “dirty secret” that no one wants to talk about.
Speaking at the 29th D.S. Borker Memorial Lecture, Jaising said that, in her experience, several women judges had approached her with complaints of sexual harassment by male judges. She attributed such incidents, in part, to the deeply embedded hierarchical structure within the judicial system.
Jaising also recounted the experience of a woman judge she had represented, who allegedly faced inappropriate demands from a male judge and subsequently lost her job after resisting them. She criticised practices that, according to her, reflect feudal and hierarchical attitudes within the higher judiciary.
She expressed hope that such practices and the harassment faced by women judges would come to an end by 2047, stressing the need for a more dignified and equitable judicial environment.
Compiled and Researched By: Adv. Anjani Singh