Breaking the Stereotype: Supreme Court and Gendered Presumptions in India

Speaking on ‘Women for Justice’ Justice Ayesha Malik from Pakistan rightly observed that, ‘Including women in the judiciary is not simply about ensuring that ‘her’ perception is relevant to resolving cases about women. It is about integrating the gender perspective and giving equal visibility to women.’ As she stated it is not always a woman standing for and by a woman and this perception is most suited to the Indian Judiciary which despite having a very low representation of women in the judiciary has emerged as the flag bearer of women's rights and gender parity. This article is an attempt to revisit some of the landmark judgments by the Supreme Court of India where the judiciary dared to question the age-old presumptions on the relationship between law and women and legal jurisprudence based on such presumptions.