Coping with Gender Diversity in District Judiciary: The Layered Reality of Presence without Power

Prof. Rangin Pallav Tripathy and Dr. Suman Dash Bhattamishra examine the institutional implications of the increasing representation of women in India's district judiciary following the introduction of reservations in several states. While acknowledging that these measures have contributed to a significant rise in the number of women judges, the authors argue that diversity at the stage of recruitment does not necessarily translate into substantive equality within judicial institutions. Focusing on Odisha as a case study, they analyse the career progression of over 700 judicial officers across forty-five years, alongside the distribution of leadership positions over an eighteen-year period. Their findings demonstrate that despite greater numerical representation, women continue to face structural barriers in accessing positions of authority and institutional influence. The article therefore contends that the pursuit of gender equality in the judiciary must extend beyond recruitment to address inequalities in career advancement, leadership, and the internal distribution of power.

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