Supreme Court Directs States & High Courts To Ensure Availability Of Washrooms, Ladies' Bar Rooms For Women Lawyers

The Supreme Court today directed all States/UTs and High Courts to ensure availability of exclusive bar rooms for women lawyers as well as washrooms within their respective jurisdictions. 

A bench of CJI Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohana passed the order, emphasizing that the States/UTs must allocate necessary funds wherever required and the High Courts' building-cum-infrastructure committees must oversee implementation. 

The order was passed in a petition filed by certain women advocates highlighting the absence of ladies' bar rooms and other essential facilities in courts across the country. Itstated: 

"Every State government, Union Territory, and the High Courts are obligated to provide facilities to members of the Bar in terms of directions already issued by this court. We hasten to add that...it is obligation of all State governments and the High Courts to ensure that wherever in the district courts, sub-divisional (taluka) courts, there are practicing women members in the Bar, irrespective of their strength, however proportionate to such strength, a separate and exclusive women's bar room shall be provided, along with basic amenities like washrooms and other facilities. With respect thereto, we direct all State governments to allocate the necessary funds, if not already available. The building-cum-infrastructure committees of the High Courts are directed to take up this issue on priority basis and ensure that all such facilities are created in the district and taluka courts." 

Opining that the pattern of basic facilities should be uniform across all states/UTs, the Court called upon the Advocate Generals/Standing Counsels of States/UTs to submit progress reports to the office of Attorney General R Venkataramani so the AG can place a compilation before the court.

It also permitted the petitioners and intervenors to give suggestions to the AG. Where the suggestions pertain to a particular State, the Court said that the same may be referred by AG Venkataramani to the concerned Advocate General so they may take up the suggestion with the State government for necessary compliance. 

During the hearing, AG Venkataramani informed the Court that he had held one meeting with the Advocate Generals and another meeting was proposed to be held by the end of this month to deliberate on the issues. The CJI impressed upon the parties that the AG shall act as the central nodal authority through whom the states/UTs may furnish their details. "We would like the Attorney General first to satisfy himself about the facilities, additional allocation of funds and budgets provided by the States" the CJI said. 

Senior Advocate Dr Monika Gusain apprised that out of 69 respondents, only 21 had filed their status reports. When she contended that the affidavit by Gujarat High Court appeared to be the best so far, as it dealt with both issues (washrooms and ladies' bar rooms), CJI Kant suggested that Gusain send some volunteers to ascertain the ground reality and produce a video before the Court, instead of going by the affidavit. 

Gusain later underlined that pursuant to the Supreme Court's order, court complexes were being modified to include washrooms for women. She questioned whether and when these complexes, alongwith new court building plans, would be modified to provide for ladies' bar rooms. 

Senior Advocate Jayna Kothari furnished a compilation before the court on the affidavits filed so far. She submitted that even as per the 16-17 affidavits filed by States/High Courts, many had admitted that there were no washrooms for women in district court complexes. 

Kothari underlined that Haryana had not even conducted an inspection (following the SC order), while Punjab admitted that only 9 out of 67 court complexes had washrooms for women. 

"If there are no ladies' bar rooms, it is a very pitiable condition. We strongly disapprove of it. It is the duty of all High Courts and State governments to ensure that wherever lady members are there, young girls are practicing, they must provide an exclusive women's bar room with all facilities. This is the mandate. We do not want to deviate from that. It has to be complied with, whether additional funds or additional land are required. Whatever is required to be done. That mandate must be understood well. We are only at the stage of execution..."

The matter has been posted on December 2, when the Court is likely to issue comprehensive directions. 

Earlier, the Court had observed in this case that the availability of basic infrastructure for women advocates within court premises bears a direct nexus with the fundamental right to life and dignity under Article 21 of the Constitution. It had said that when women advocates are required to spend substantial portions of their day within court premises, facilities necessary for their comfort, privacy, safety and professional functioning assume "utmost significance". 

In a subsequent hearing, the Court observed that access to washroom is a basic human right and revenue-deficit with any state/UT shall be no excuse for failure to provide the same.