The Supreme Court of India has reserved its judgment regarding the termination of two female judicial officers by the Madhya Pradesh High Court, following arguments that their dismissals may have violated fundamental rights.
The bench, consisting of Justices B V Nagarathna and N Kotiswar Singh, listened to submissions from senior lawyers Indira Jaising and R Basant, who represented the terminated officers, as well as from amicus curiae and senior advocate Gaurav Agarwal.
This case originated when the Madhya Pradesh High Court, through an administrative committee and a full court meeting, deemed the performances of six female judges during their probation period as “unsatisfactory.” This led to their termination in June 2023. The High Court later reinstated four of these judges, leaving out Aditi Kumar Sharma and Sarita Chaudhary.
Justice Nagarathna highlighted the need for judicial officers to maintain a disciplined, low-profile lifestyle and refrain from social media engagement to preserve the impartiality and integrity of the judiciary.
The two judges in question, who joined the judicial service in 2017 and 2018 respectively, faced significant personal challenges during their tenure, which were brought up during the court’s review. Notably, Judge Sharma reported having a miscarriage in 2021 and subsequently dealt with her brother’s cancer diagnosis, factors that may have impacted her professional performance. Despite these challenges, the state’s law department moved forward with the termination based on the evaluation of her case disposal rates, which fell during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The affected judges have contested their terminations on the grounds of fairness and equality under the Constitution, arguing that their rights to maternity and childcare leave were not adequately considered in their performance assessments. They claim that this oversight constitutes a violation of their fundamental rights under Articles 14 (right to equality before the law) and 21 (right to life and personal liberty).
