27 January 2023
The Indian Supreme Court Collegium Picking its Battle
In an unprecedented move, the collegium of the Supreme Court of India on the 17th and 18th of January, 2023, passed resolutions calling out the executive’s delay in the judicial appointments of five advocates by publicly countering the government’s objections against their appointment. In this piece, I discuss how the Supreme Court collegium has confronted the discriminatory treatment of persons who openly identify as a part of the LGBTQIA+ community in the process of judicial appointments by standing up to the executive’s bullying. The piece also looks into how the collegium has confronted the union government’s attempt to suppress dissent among advocates and why these resolutions are highly consequential. Continue reading >>
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05 November 2022
Regressive, Sexist, and Unconstitutional
On 31 October 2022, a two judge bench of the Indian Supreme Court delivered a crucial order, reiterating its ban on the so called “two finger test”. The continued usage of the test, the Court stated in State of Jharkhand v. Shailendra Kumar Rai, is professional misconduct. To enforce the ban of this practice against survivors of sexual violence the bench issued a slew of directions. In this post, I discuss the impact of this order on the constitutional rights of survivors of sexual violence. While the Court’s judgment is a progressive one, it might not have the desired effect, namely the complete ban on the conduct of the ‘two finger test’. Continue reading >>
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