Supreme Court grants 33% Reservation for Women at SCBA

By: WE Staff | Friday, 3 May 2024

In accordance with gender equality in the legal profession, the Supreme Court of India has made a substantial advancement. The honorable court firmly believes that it is crucial to provide women with at least one-third of reservation posts in the nation's top bar organization, the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA), despite the special general body's opposition to reservation for women.

The Supreme Court has mandated that women would be granted a third of the executive member and office bearer seats within the SCBA. In effect with the May 16 election this year, this directive will be regulated. The court also stated that two of the six senior executive member positions and three of the nine executive committee seats would be allocated entirely to women. The court further mentioned, "Some of the posts in the Executive Committee must be reserved for women members of the Bar. In addition, for the post of President, Vice-President, Secretary, Joint Secretary, Treasurer, and Joint Treasurer, at least one of the office bearers shall be reserved for women candidates exclusively by turn and on a rotation basis."

SCBA President and Senior Advocate Adish Aggarwal supports women's reservation in the executive committee. Lawyer MG Yogmaya raised the issue in a petition at the Delhi High Court. Following this, the Supreme Court has directed the SCBA executive committee to consider eight resolutions, including women's reservation, eligibility for office bearer posts, and revisions to admission fees. The court emphasized that norms, eligibility conditions, membership, and fee structure must consider timely reforms to address future challenges.