Women’s Day 2025: Trailblazing Female Judges of Supreme Court of India

The presence of women in various sectors in India-politics, cinema, and the judiciary-has been steadily increasing. While the representation of female judges in the Supreme Court has historically been lower than that of males, their contributions to justice and legal insight have been remarkably impactful.

In its 75 years of existence, the Supreme Court of India has witnessed only 11 female judges. On average, each woman judge has served about 3.87 years on the bench, collectively issuing 1,022 judgments. As we approach Women's Day 2025, let's highlight these trailblazing women who have significantly influenced India's judiciary.

Justice Fathima Beevi (1989-1992)

• The first woman judge of the Supreme Court of India
• Former judge of the Kerala High Court
• Served for over 2.5 years and delivered 49 judgments

Justice Sujata Manohar (1994-1999)

• The second woman appointed to the Supreme Court
• Former Chief Justice of the Kerala High Court
• Served for 4 years and 8 months, issuing 217 judgments (the second-highest among female judges)

Justice Ruma Pal (2000-2006)

• The longest-serving female Supreme Court judge (over 6 years)
• Former judge of the Calcutta High Court
• Delivered 152 judgments

Justice Gyan Sudha Misra (2010-2014)

• Former Chief Justice of the Jharkhand High Court
• Served for 4 years, issuing 41 landmark judgments, including significant cases involving the Srinivasan-BCCI conflict of interest and the Delhi Uphaar fire tragedy

Justice Ranjana Desai (2011-2014)

• Former judge of the Bombay High Court
• Served for over 3 years and delivered 76 judgments
• Later became Chairperson of the Delimitation Commission in 2021

Justice R Banumathi (2014-2020)

• Former Chief Justice of the Jharkhand High Court
• Served for nearly 6 years, authoring 386 judgments (the highest among female judges)

Justice Indu Malhotra (2018-2021)

• The first woman to be directly elevated to the Supreme Court from the Bar Council of India
• Served for nearly 3 years, delivering 70 judgments

Justice Indira Banerjee (2018-2022)

• Former Chief Justice of the Madras High Court
• Served for over 4 years and issued 31 judgments

Justice Hima Kohli (2021-2024)**

• Former Chief Justice of the Telangana High Court
• Served for 3 years and delivered 40 judgments

Justice Bela Trivedi (2021-Present)

• Former judge of the Gujarat High Court
• Currently serving, with tenure extending until June 9, 2025

Justice BV Nagarathna (2021-Present, Future CJI in 2027)

• Former judge of the Karnataka High Court
• Set to become India's first woman Chief Justice in 2027
• Serving until October 29, 2027