Women continue to remain significantly underrepresented in India's High Courts, forming only a small proportion of the overall judicial strength across the country.
According to data released by the Ministry of Law and Justice on February 6, 2026, there are 116 women judges out of a total working strength of 781 judges across the High Courts, accounting for roughly 14.85% of the sitting High Court judges.
Women's representation in Supreme Court
The Supreme Court currently has only one woman judge, Justice B.V. Nagarathna, out of its present working strength of 33 judges.
No woman judge has been appointed to the Supreme Court since September 2021, when three women judges (Justices Hima Kohli, Bela Trivedi and BV Nagarathna) were elevated together to the Court. Over time, as the others retired, Justice Nagarathna remains the only woman judge currently serving on the Bench.
Historically, the highest number of women judges in the Supreme Court at any given time has been four. This occurred following the appointments made in September 2021, which briefly brought the total number of sitting women judges in the Court to four.
Today, on the occasion of International Women's Day, the Chief Justice of India, Surya Kant, called for measures to increase the representation of women on the bench. While the picture in the higher judiciary may not be positive, the representation of women in the district judiciary is quite encouraging. The CJI stated today that women judges account for nearly 37% in the district judiciary.
High Courts: Overall Picture
Across the 25 High Courts, the Punjab & Haryana High Court has the highest number of women judges (18).
The Punjab & Haryana High Court leads the country number-wise with 18 women judges out of a working strength of 61, accounting for 29.51% of its bench, one of the highest among major High Courts. The Delhi High Court and Madras High Court also have relatively significant representation with 10 women judges each, translating to 22.73% and 18.87% respectively.
The Bombay High Court has 12 women judges (15%), while Karnataka (9 women judges, 19.57%), Calcutta (8, 18.60%), Gujarat (7, 20%), and Telangana (7, 25%) also show comparatively better gender representation. Among smaller High Courts, Sikkim has the highest percentage representation at 33.33%, though this is based on one woman judge out of three.
At the other end of the spectrum, several High Courts continue to have extremely low representation of women judges. Madhya Pradesh High Court has only one woman judge out of a working strength of 42 (2.38%), one of the lowest ratios in the country. Allahabad High Court, the largest High Court with a working strength of 110 judges, has only 7 women judges (6.36%), reflecting a very low proportion despite its large bench. Similarly, Kerala (7.5%), Jharkhand (7.14%), Chhattisgarh (6.67%), Patna (5.26%), and Orissa (5.26%) have limited representation of women judges.
Some High Courts currently have no women judges at all. These include the Manipur High Court, Tripura High Court, and Uttarakhand High Court, each reporting zero women judges in their present working strength.
High Court-wise Data
Allahabad High Court
Working strength: 110
Women judges: 7
Percentage: 6.36%
Andhra Pradesh High Court
Working strength: 32
Women judges: 5
Percentage: 15.63%
Bombay High Court
Working strength: 80
Women judges: 12
Percentage: 15%
Calcutta High Court
Working strength: 43
Women judges: 8
Percentage: 18.60%
Chhattisgarh High Court
Working strength: 15
Women judges: 1
Percentage: 6.67%
Delhi High Court
Working strength: 44
Women judges: 10
Percentage: 22.73%
Gauhati High Court
Working strength: 25
Women judges: 5
Percentage: 20%
Gujarat High Court
Working strength: 35
Women judges: 7
Percentage: 20%
Himachal Pradesh High Court
Working strength: 12
Women judges: 1
Percentage: 8.33%
Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court
Working strength: 14
Women judges: 2
Percentage: 14.29%
Jharkhand High Court
Working strength: 14
Women judges: 1
Percentage: 7.14%
Karnataka High Court
Working strength: 46
Women judges: 9
Percentage: 19.57%
Kerala High Court
Working strength: 40
Women judges: 3
Percentage: 7.5%
Madhya Pradesh High Court
Working strength: 42
Women judges: 1
Percentage: 2.38%
Madras High Court
Working strength: 53
Women judges: 10
Percentage: 18.87%
Manipur High Court
Working strength: 3
Women judges: 0
Percentage: 0%
Meghalaya High Court
Working strength: 4
Women judges: 1
Percentage: 25%
Orissa High Court
Working strength: 19
Women judges: 1
Percentage: 5.26%
Patna High Court
Working strength: 38
Women judges: 2
Percentage: 5.26%
Punjab & Haryana High Court
Working strength: 61
Women judges: 18
Percentage: 29.51%
Rajasthan High Court
Working strength: 39
Women judges: 4
Percentage: 10.26%
Sikkim High Court
Working strength: 3
Women judges: 1
Percentage: 33.33%
Telangana High Court
Working strength: 28
Women judges: 7
Percentage: 25%
Tripura High Court
Working strength: 4
Women judges: 0
Percentage: 0%
Uttarakhand High Court
Working strength: 10
Women judges: 0
Percentage: 0%
Historical Representation Across High Courts
The historical data on women judges in High Courts since their establishment shows the following representation:
Allahabad High Court – 23 women out of 858 judges (2.68%)
Andhra Pradesh High Court – 13 out of 273 (4.76%)
Bombay High Court – 31 out of 577 (5.37%)
Calcutta High Court – 21 out of 197 (10.65%)
Chhattisgarh High Court – 2 out of 62 (3.23%)
Delhi High Court – 34 out of 290 (11.74%)
Gauhati High Court – 10 out of 174 (5.75%)
Gujarat High Court – 12 out of 232 (5.17%)
Himachal Pradesh High Court – 4 out of 84 (4.76%)
Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court – 3 out of 104 (2.88%)
Jharkhand High Court – 5 out of 56 (8.93%)
Karnataka High Court – 16 out of 300 (5.33%)
Kerala High Court – 23 out of 289 (7.96%)
Madhya Pradesh High Court – 13 out of 309 (4.21%)
Madras High Court – 27 out of 474 (5.70%)
Manipur High Court – 2 out of 32 (6.25%)
Meghalaya High Court – 3 out of 30 (10%)
Orissa High Court – 4 out of 139 (2.88%)
Patna High Court – 10 out of 376 (2.66%)
Punjab & Haryana High Court – 37 out of 425 (8.71%)
Rajasthan High Court – 11 out of 292 (3.77%)
Sikkim High Court – 1 out of 37 (2.70%)
Telangana High Court – 15 out of 62 (24.19%)
Tripura High Court – 0 out of 17 (0%)
Uttarakhand High Court – 2 out of 49 (4.08%)