Published Paper Details:

Despite decades of constitutional guarantees of equality and judicial independence, women are underrepresented in India's upper judiciary. The Supreme Court has had few women judges since its founding, and High Courts reflect institutional and cultural exclusions. The study explores these changes using qualitative interviews, judge biographical data, archival evidence, and secondary data on appointments and collegium recommendations to assess impediments and avenues to women's judicial progression. The analysis using thematic coding and descriptive statistics shows how the legal profession's patriarchal culture, secretive collegium decision-making, and dependency on elite professional networks disadvantage women. Trends include tokenistic appointments, brief tenures, and regional disparities, with urban courts offering greater opportunities. India lags behind South Africa, the US, and the UK in adopting diversity mandates and open judicial commissions. In addition to representation, women's marginalization undermines the judiciary's credibility, limits gender-sensitive jurisprudence, and limits democratic accountability. Practical alternatives suggest formal mentorship, open evaluation procedures, and inclusivity-promoting institutional improvements. The study shows how cultural hierarchies effect legal outcomes, developing feminist institutionalism. Despite limitations such limited collegium file access and a small sample size of women judges, the report provides essential policy, advocacy, and research guidance.