14.8% Women Judges In High Courts; P&H HC Has Highest Number

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 CourtThe 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 PictureAcross 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 DataAllahabad High CourtWorking strength: 110Women judges: 7Percentage: 6.36%Andhra Pradesh High CourtWorking strength: 32Women judges: 5Percentage: 15.63%Bombay High CourtWorking strength: 80Women judges: 12Percentage: 15%Calcutta High CourtWorking strength: 43Women judges: 8Percentage: 18.60%Chhattisgarh High CourtWorking strength: 15Women judges: 1Percentage: 6.67%Delhi High CourtWorking strength: 44Women judges: 10Percentage: 22.73%Gauhati High CourtWorking strength: 25Women judges: 5Percentage: 20%Gujarat High CourtWorking strength: 35Women judges: 7Percentage: 20%Himachal Pradesh High CourtWorking strength: 12Women judges: 1Percentage: 8.33%Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High CourtWorking strength: 14Women judges: 2Percentage: 14.29%Jharkhand High CourtWorking strength: 14Women judges: 1Percentage: 7.14%Karnataka High CourtWorking strength: 46Women judges: 9Percentage: 19.57%Kerala High CourtWorking strength: 40Women judges: 3Percentage: 7.5%Madhya Pradesh High CourtWorking strength: 42Women judges: 1Percentage: 2.38%Madras High CourtWorking strength: 53Women judges: 10Percentage: 18.87%Manipur High CourtWorking strength: 3Women judges: 0Percentage: 0%Meghalaya High CourtWorking strength: 4Women judges: 1Percentage: 25%Orissa High CourtWorking strength: 19Women judges: 1Percentage: 5.26%Patna High CourtWorking strength: 38Women judges: 2Percentage: 5.26%Punjab & Haryana High CourtWorking strength: 61Women judges: 18Percentage: 29.51%Rajasthan High CourtWorking strength: 39Women judges: 4Percentage: 10.26%Sikkim High CourtWorking strength: 3Women judges: 1Percentage: 33.33%Telangana High CourtWorking strength: 28Women judges: 7Percentage: 25%Tripura High CourtWorking strength: 4Women judges: 0Percentage: 0%Uttarakhand High CourtWorking strength: 10Women judges: 0Percentage: 0% Historical Representation...

14.8% Women Judges In High Courts; P&H HC Has Highest Number

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