The National Commission for Women (NCW) on Wednesday issued notice to the Madras High Court, seeking an action taken report within three days on lack of a designated toilet for women lawyers at the recently-inaugurated court complex in Ooty town of Tamil Nadu.
Taking cognisance of a complaint filed by Aditya Kashyap, the Commission said it was disheartening to learn that the women lawyers in Nilgiris have been demanding a toilet in the court complex for the past 25 years without any resolution.
This prolonged neglect of their legitimate and basic requirement was not only a violation of their rights, but also hindered the ability of female lawyers to carry out their legal responsibilities effectively, said a release issued by NCW Chairperson Rekha Sharma.
Addressed to M. Jothiraman, Registrar General of the Madras High Court, the release said providing a separate and fully functional toilet facility for women lawyers was not only a matter of gender equality and dignity, but also an essential step towards creating an inclusive and conducive environment for all legal professionals.
As per the Commission, the new court complex was inaugurated in June, 2022. While the complex boasted of several amenities and facilities, it shockingly lacked a designated toilet that women lawyers could access.
This oversight had left women lawyers in an uncomfortable and undignified position, having to struggle with basic sanitation needs while performing their professional duties, it added.
On May 24 this year, Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud had stressed on the need to provide proper meals in courts and proper washroom facilities for women, pointing out that there were many courts, which did not have women washroom facilities. The CJI made the statement during the inaugural event of the new building of the Jharkhand High Court in Ranchi.
Women lawyers of Ooty have never had access to a women’s toilet in the court complex, for as long as they have been practicing. Some of these lawyers have been members of the Bar for 20-25 years.
The women lawyers said that initially, their male colleagues and male members of the local Bar Association would also make representations to the Principal District Judge and the Madras High Court Registrar, asking for adequate infrastructure facilities for themselves and for the women lawyers.
However, after a representation made in open court to the then District Judge Dr P Murugan, and another one made before then Madras High Court Acting Chief Justice T Raja failed to yield any result, the women were left to fend for themselves.
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