In a first, J&K High Court gets two female judges

History has been created after for the first time two women were appointed the judges of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court.

It is also for the first time that a woman from the state has been appointed as the judge of the high court.

A resident of Jammu, Sindhu Sharma, 46, was elevated to the post of judge in the HC. Justice Geeta Mittal of Delhi High Court was transferred and appointed as chief justice of Jammu and Kashmir High Court.

Sharma and Justice Mittal are among the three judges appointed by the president Ram Nath Kovind on Friday. Rashid Ali Dar, a retired principal district judge Srinagar, is the third judge to have been appointed for the J&K high court.

Sharma, an assistant solicitor general of India in the Jammu and Kashmir High court, has done her LLB from Punjab University. She has been a practising advocate since 1996. The HC has the strength of 17 judges. But only eight judges are currently holding fort.

"With the appointment of Justice Geeta Mittal and Sindhu Sharma, the J&K High Court gets its first women milords", tweeted Dr Shahid Iqbal Chaudhary, a senior IAS officer posted as district development commissioner of Bandipora.

Top lawyers said the move will go a long way in the women empowerment of Jammu and Kashmir. "It is for the first time a new precedent has been created. It is a healthy trend", said Mushtaq Ahmad Dar, vice-president of Jammu and Kashmir Bar Association, Srinagar.

He added, "Now sky is the limit for female advocates. They too will try their level best to get elevated. Up till now it was not the precedent. The women will now be motivated to dream big."