Rohit Kapoor
Proud father of a daughter is a dream come true in my world. And if she wants to join this male dominated legal profession, I have to say with a constraint, though these are the times of Globalization in legal profession, she still finds it quite difficult. Nothing except some of us saying few good words in some conference. Suffice it to say, in Jammu and Kashmir, State of affairs is dismal to reduce this gender discrimination.
Look at this miniscule number of law women law officers in High Court wings of Jammu and Kashmir representing State of J & K its litigation. Just two out of thirty five in Advocate General’s Organization. In Jammu, out of three thousand (3000) members of bar, approximately six hundred plus (600) are women. And out of these six hundred plus, only (1) woman is there as the law officer of the State before Jammu wing of High Court. Again, in Kashmir out of Two hundred plus (200) there is just one (1) before Srinagar wing of J & K High Court. Raison d’être, I can’t think of. There are many areas of gender discrimination in this profession and this is the one and the most glaring. And statistics itself speaks of it very loud and clear.
Look at this miniscule number of women law officers before High Court wings of Jammu and Srinagar representing State of J & K its litigation. Just two (2).
In Jammu, out of three thousand plus (3000) members of Bar, approximately six hundred plus (600) are women. And out of these six hundred plus, only (1) woman is there for the State before Jammu wing of High Court. Again, in Srinagar, out of Two hundred plus (200) women lawyers, there is just one (1) for Srinagar wing of J & K High Court.
Raison d’être, I can’t think of. There are many areas of gender discrimination in this profession and this is the one and the most glaring. And statistics itself speaks of it very loud and clear.
I am not suggesting any sort of reservation for them. But you can’t deny them their due. I am conscious of the fact that a client has a choice in engaging a lawyer. However, State stands at a different footing when it has to engage lawyers or other professionals. It cannot ignore them just for they are not men. Performance in courts; I bet they are no less than their male colleagues.
Slowly but surely, perception regarding legal profession is changing favorably to bring equality in status in rest of the country. Why not in our State?
They need not have waited until it was sought on behalf of Cornelia Sorabji to amend the laws to include women in the definition of term ‘person’ so that women could enter the legal profession. And India had to wait till 1951 to get its first legal professional academician in the form of Lolita Sarkar.
I may quote here extract of key note address by Hon’ble Justice Chandrachud, in an event organized by Harvard Law Centre on ‘The Indian Legal Profession in the Age of Globalization’,
“Development, to my mind, should not mask the reality and truth of India; and the truth of India is that you’re confronting discrimination, violence towards women, gender injustice – I see it every day of my life as a judge and realise how little we can do sometimes to reform the system”.
All of us owe a social responsibility to highlight and take up the cause with those at the helm of affairs of State Government to ensure a beginning is made and process is set in motion for bringing gender equality in engagement of law officers by the State.
(The author is FMR, Additional Advocate General, State of J&K)
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