"Hope more ladies will be elevated to the Bench:" Justice Shircy V recalls all-female Full Bench in farewell address

While delivering her farewell address at the Kerala High Court, Justice Shircy V, who is set to demit office of May 31, expressed her hope that more women are elevated to the Bench in the future..Justice Shircy's retirement brings the total number of female judges at the Kerala High Court back to 6 from the recent all-time high of 7 out of a sanctioned strength of 47 judges. "I hope that more and more ladies will be elevated to the Bench to uphold and add to the glory of this prestigious institution in the future," Justice Shircy said. .She also fondly reminisced about her experience as part of an all-female full bench which was constituted, perhaps coincidentally, on March 8, International Women's Day this year. "I cherish the memories of that day. The court hall was packed with lady advocates. The staff deployed to assist us were also ladies. The arguments were opened by a lady advocate, Latha MR. For us, it was really a day worth remembering," the judge recalled..The judge tipped her hat to the female pathbreakers of the Indian judiciary, Justices Anna Chandy and Fathima Beevi."At this moment, I remember with great pride, the late Justice Anna Chandy, the first lady judge of the Kerala High Court, other lady judges who have adorned the seat of justice and discharged the solemn functions of this honourable court, as well as Justice Fathima Beevi, the first ever lady judge of the Supreme Court of India", she said..Justice Shircy also said that credibility of the judicial system, being derived largely from the common man's faith in it, must not be allowed to be eroded by anyone, by any means."Every citizen of India looks up at the judiciary with hope and expectation that they will get justice and it is for the judges to fulfill the same by exercising their jurisdiction with legal excellence and impartiality," the judge said. .Born on May 31, 1960, Justice Shircy obtained a BCom degree from St. Teresa's College, Ernakulam in 1981 and a law degree from the Government Law College, Ernakulam. After enrolling as an Advocate in December 1984, she started her legal practice at Thodupuzha.Four years later, she was appointed Munsiff in Pathanamthitta following which, she served as a Munsiff-Magistrate at Perambra. She went on to serve as Sub-Judge in Thrissur, Kozhikode, Kochi and Kottayam .Over the course of her judicial career, Justice Shircy served as Chief Judicial Magistrate, Family Court Judge and as Additional District Judge at Ernakulam, Kozhikode and Thrissur. After serving as Principal District Judge at Manjeri, Thalassery and Thiruvananthapuram, Justice Shircy was elevated to the Kerala High Court on October 5, 2016 and appointed as a permanent judge on March 16, 2018..Speaking at the farewell event organised in the Chief Justice's court, Justice K Vinod Chandran and Advocate General Gopalakrishna Kurup K, spoke of Justice Shircy's family's connection to the judiciary. Both of Justice Shircy's parents were employed as court staff and her sister, Shiny V, was a retired District Judge whose untimely death in 2021, was mourned by all speakers at today's event. .All-Female Full Bench hears cases at Kerala High Court on International Women's Day 2022