New Delhi: Activists from women’s groups and civil society members have issued an open letter to retired judges appealing to them to “speak out on the side of justice and fairness” while expressing “solidarity with the complainant”.
The letter points out that there is currently, an “unprecedented crisis of credibility vis-à-vis the Supreme Court” as the court, in dealing with a complaint of sexual harassment against the CJI, failed to give the complainant a fair hearing.
The letter further states that the procedure followed “in this case not only stands in utter violation of principles of natural justice but also in contravention with both, the letter and spirit of Vishakha Judgment and the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act 2013”.
Condemning the “blatant abuse of power” by the highest constitutional authority of the Supreme Court, the letter also draws attention to the complainant and points out that “her family are under threat and intimidation”.
Also read: In Photos | Women Protest Supreme Court Panel’s Clean Chit to CJI Ranjan Gogoi
Expressing disappointment over the manner in which the allegations of sexual harassment were handled by the highest judicial authority, the statement says that it is “a dark and sad day” for justice as the Supreme Court “has told us that when it comes to one of its own, imbalances of power don’t matter, due process doesn’t matter, and basic norms of justice don’t matter”.
Finally, the letter urges the Supreme Court to correct its own course and undo the gross injustice meted out to the complainant and ensure that women and marginalised sections of society get a fair hearing in the corridors of justice. The letter also asks that the court lay down a “just, transparent and fair procedure” for such cases as soon as possible.
Read the full text of their open letter below.
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We are activists from women’s groups and civil society members who have engaged with issues of justice, rights, and law reforms, specifically those related with women and sexual violence starting from the rape law reforms in 1982 to the final changed law in 2013. We address this letter to the retired members of the higher judiciary, to appeal to you to please speak up on the side of justice and fairness in the matter of allegations of sexual harassment against the Chief Justice of India.
On September 6, 1979, Upendra Baxi, Vasudha Dhagamwar, Raghunath Kelkar and Lotika Sarkar, well known and reputed lawyers and legal scholars, addressed an open letter, to focus judicial attention and public debate over a decision rendered by the Supreme Court on September 15, 1978, with respect to the complaints of a tribal girl who was sexually assaulted by two police personnel in the police station. The Supreme Court had reversed the High Court order convicting the policemen of rape and acquitted the accused police personnel.
Citing reasons for their disagreement with the highest court of the country they said:
“We can only appeal, in conclusion, to have the case reheard, as an unusual situation, by a larger bench, and if necessary by even the Full Court. This may appear to your Lordship as a startlingly unconventional, and even a naive suggestion. But nothing short of protection of human rights and constitutionalism is at stake. . . . Maybe on re-examination, Ganpat and Tukaram may stand acquitted for better reasons than those now available. But what matters is a search for liberation from the colonial and male-dominated notions of what may constitute the element of consent, and the burden of proof, for rape which affect many Mathuras on the Indian countryside.
You will no doubt forgive us for this impertinence of writing an open letter to you. But the future of judicial protection of human rights at grassroots level in India at the turn of the century, a concern we all share as citizens and as lawmen, leaves us with no other and better alternative.”
This letter proved historical and worked as a catalyst for a nationwide women’s movement which has brought about major changes in laws related to women particularly around sexual violence and harassment. It forced the recognition of the element of power in incidents of rape. Custodial rape was redefined in law. It is this legacy that brought us to a much broader articulation of the offence of rape in the 2013 Criminal Law Amendments wherein custody was defined more broadly to extend the notion beyond physical boundaries to the idea of coercive circumstances where power is assumed to be inherent and embedded. This is the legacy that made it possible to speak of child sexual abuse and also gave us Vishakha guidelines for addressing sexual harassment at the workplace.
Having traversed this whole journey with faith and respect reposed in the Courts and the judiciary, we, members of women’s groups, lawyers, scholars and civil society members are once again in a situation when we believe that we have no alternative but to appeal to members of the judiciary to reexamine their actions.
In this matter of a complaint of sexual harassment made by a junior woman employee of the Supreme Court against the Chief Justice of India, we have merely been seeking “a fair and impartial enquiry in accordance with the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act 2013.”
Also read: Women’s Groups, Lawyers Support Complainant’s Decision to Withdraw From Inquiry Into CJI Gogoi
The Supreme Court has, time and again stood by the rights of women and marginalised and, through many landmark judgments, has helped to advance and consolidate the rights of women through a transformative interpretation of the Constitution. Some examples of these that come to mind are Vishakha judgment that addressed the fundamental rights of working women and laid down guidelines to deal with sexual harassment, the Sabarimala judgment upholding women’s rights to worship, the Maharashtra bar dancers right to work, setting aside the practice of talaq-e-biddat, framing schemes for compensation and rehabilitation of survivors of sexual assault, reading down of Section 377, granting recognition to gender identity and rights to transgender persons in the NALSA case.
It is judgments such as these that repose our faith in the judiciary of this country. Unfortunately, today we are facing an unprecedented crisis of credibility of Supreme Court, as the Court in dealing with the complaint of sexual harassment against the Chief Justice has acted not only in utter violation of principles of natural justice but also in contravention of Vishakha Judgment and the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act 2013.
Just to recapture, on April 18, 2019, a 29 pages affidavit was submitted by a woman employee of Supreme Court to the 22 judges of the Hon’ble Supreme Court, detailing allegations of the sexual harassment faced by her from none less than the Chief Justice of India. The Supreme Court called a special hearing over this matter on Saturday, April 20, 2019, at 10:30 am, through a bench consisting of two Judges besides the Chief Justice of India, against whom the allegations of sexual harassment were made.
With no notice given to the aggrieved woman, the CJI not only declared the allegations false but further stated that these allegations threaten the independence of the judiciary. He also declared that the complainant had a criminal background. The bench further asked the media to show restraint to protect the independence of the judiciary. None of these observations were based upon any investigation by any competent authority.
This was a shocking breach of procedure wherein before the complainant was heard the powerful accused was allowed to make public declarations of his innocence and also point fingers at the complainant. Through this hearing, the Supreme Court lowered itself to the level of very many accused powerful men who resort to maligning the complainant by citing false and irrelevant past histories and by imputing ulterior motives.
This move was criticized by many people including us through an open letter to all judges of the Supreme Court dated April 24, 2019. Thereafter a committee was formed of three judges of Supreme Court headed by Justice Bobde. The constitution of this committee itself was in contravention of 2013 Act and the guidelines laid down by the Vishakha Judgment of 1997 by the Supreme Court itself, as it neither had any external member nor was it headed by a woman. In spite of this, the complainant participated hoping to get a fair hearing.
When this committee started the hearing, it denied the aggrieved woman the right to be represented by legal/support person of her choice, completely ignoring the unequal balance of power not only between the parties but also between the complainant and the Committee itself. The committee obviously consisted of senior most judges in the country while the complainant did not have legal training of any comparison. Procedures included in Vishakha and the POSH Act are cognisant of these unequal power equations in the workspace and a fair procedure adopted by the Court should also take this into account.
The matter is even more grievous because the complainant had asked for someone to accompany her because she has a hearing disability but was denied even that. This again is in violation of the rights of people with disability, enabling whose participation is critical to any imagination of a just procedure.
The aggrieved woman after two hearings on April 26 and April 29, withdrew from the enquiry, citing that neither was she allowed representation, nor was she informed of the procedures to be followed by the committee. There was no audio or video recording of the proceeding and further, she was not even provided the minutes of the proceeding. Irrespective of these submissions the committee proceeded to hold the enquiry ex-parte.
Also read: Handling of Harassment Complaint Against CJI Perpetuates Existing Power Imbalance
And now on May 6, 2019, the Supreme Court has gone ahead and declared that there is “no substance” in the allegation contained in the complaint. Further, in full violation of her right as a complainant, she has also been denied a copy of the report. A reference is made to a judgment from times before the RTI Act and the POSH Act to support this lack of transparency towards the complainant.
This is, in our understanding, is a clear violation of any procedures of a fair and independent enquiry. We are aware, that this is an extraordinary case that calls for extraordinary measures to be put in place, as this is a matter pertaining to the highest judicial authority under the constitution. However, extraordinary measures cannot and ought not to overlook, fundamental principles of natural justice and fair hearing.
We request you, as a respected member of the judiciary, to lend your support to the complainant’s right to unbiased, impartial enquiry proceedings, and urge you to call upon the Supreme Court to take measures to correct the prevailing situation, by establishing a proper procedure to inquire into the allegations.
We are proponents of independence of the judiciary and understand and respect that completely. However, we also believe that pointing out any lapses in the system of justice so that it may be rectified is, in fact, protecting this independence and not interference in procedures.
Further, we wish to reiterate that women and other marginalised sections of society do not have access to any societal power and turn to Courts expecting that they shall get a fair hearing. Khap panchayats and other mechanisms that function on ideas of “social morality of the powerful” are not where we seek justice. We have faith in the judicial constitutional mechanisms for any access to justice. It is with this in mind that we say that whatever be the outcome of this enquiry, it has to come through due diligence in law. Anything short of that will weaken the promise of justice to the weaker sections in this highly hierarchical society.
If the highest judicial authority does not follow its own procedures and stand up in support of the less powerful, it will send a message of disquiet to all those who keep faith in the system. What is at stake is not only the rights of women but also the credibility of the Supreme Court. It is to protect this system, that has been painstakingly created by the diligence of many members of the judiciary, that we ask you to speak.
Statement issued by:
- Saheli Women’s Resource Center, New Delhi
- National Federation of Indian Women
- All India Progressive Women’s Association (AIPWA)
- Forum Against Oppression of Women, Mumbai
- Nari Ekta Shakti Sangathan, Delhi
- Women Against Sexual Violence and State Repression
- Nirantar, A Center for Gender and Education, New Delhi
- North East Network, Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland
- Labia – A Queer Feminist LBT Collective Mumbai
- Bebaak Collective
- People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), Maharashtra
- National Alliance of People’s Movements
- Nari Samata Manch, Pune
- Indian Christian Women’s Movement (ICWM) – Mumbai
- Sandhya Gokhale, Forum Against Oppression of Women, Mumbai
- Kalpana Kannabiran, Hyderabad
- Veena Gowda, Advocate, Mumbai
- Adv Vasudha Nagaraj, Lawyer, High Court of Telangana, Hyderabad
- Chayanika Shah, Queer Feminist Researcher and Activist, Mumbai
- Nisha Biswas, Scientist and WSS, Kolkata
- Dr Veena Shatrughna, Former Director, National Institute of Nutrition, Hyderabad
- Vyjayanti Vasanta Mogli, Transgender RTI activist, Telangana
- Meera Sanghamitra, National Alliance of People’s Movements, Telangana
- Kavita Srivastava, PUCL
- Adv. Pyoli Swatija, Supreme Court of India and WSS
- Gautam Mody, General Secretary, New Trade Union Initiative
- Flavia Agnes, Advocate
- Sandhya, Progressive Association of Women, Telangana
- V. Geetha, Historian and Writer, Chennai
- N. Vasanti, Professor of Constitutional Law, Nalsar, Hyderabad
- Mary E John, New Delhi
- Uma Chakravarti, Historian, New Delhi
- Ammu Abraham, Mumbai
- Nandita Shah, Akshara, Mumbai
- Meena Gopal, Mumbai
- Hasina Khan, Mumbai
- Shals Mahajan, Mumbai
- Rohit Prajapati, Vadodara
- Susie Tharu, Feminist Academic and Researcher, Avneshi, Hyderabad
- Amit Kumar, Student, LLB, Faculty of Law, University of Delhi
- Sarah Mathews, Sankalp Women’s Support Alliance
- Bijaya Chanda, Advocate, Alipore Court, Kolkata, West Bengal
- Nityanand Jayaraman, Writer, Social activist, Chennai.
- Sumi Krishna, Former President (2005-08), Indian Association for Women’s Studies, Bengaluru
- Kiran Shaheen, Journalist and Feminist Activist, New Delhi
- Uma Shankari, Farmer, Researcher on Water, Environment and Livelihoods
- Chitra, Labia, Mumbai
- Adv Lara Jesani, People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), Maharashtra
- Vandita Morarka, Founder/CEO, One Future Collective
- Tara, Feminist Collective, Sonepat
- Saumya Malhotra, Democracy Collective, Delhi NCR
- Arundhati Dhuru, NAPM Lucknow, UP
- Lovika Jaiswal, Campus Law Centre, University of Delhi, Noida
- Leena Pujari, KC College, Mumbai
- Vimal Bhai, National Convenor, National Alliance of People’s Movements
- B.Girija, State Project Manager, Sakhi Telangana
- Meena Seshu and Aarthi Pai, Sangram, Maharashtra
- Gita Chadha, Sociologist, Mumbai
- Shruti Chakravarty, Mental Health Practitioner, Bombay
- Nandita Narain, Associate Professor, St Stephen’s College, Delhi University. Former President, Delhi University Teachers’ Association and Federation of Central Universities Teachers’ Associations
- Mitra Mukherjee-Parikh, Former Head, Associate Professor, SNDTWU
- Dr Joseph M.T., Department of Sociology, University of Mumbai, Kalina, Mumbai
- Rukmini Banerjee, Researcher, Mumbai
- Kabi. S, Mumbai
- Dr V Rukmini Rao, Executive Director Gramya Resource Centre for Women, Tarnaka, Secunderabad, Telangana
- Karuna DW, Chennai
- Padmaja Shaw
- Purnima Gupta, Delhi
- Khadijah Faruqui, The Alternate Space Delhi, A Women’s Collective, New Delhi
- Tanya Jaiswal, Modern school, Noida
- Supriya Jain, CORO India, Mumbai
- K Ramnarayan, Uttarakhand, India
- Kamayani Bali Mahabal, Humans Rights Activist, Mumbai
- Bharat, Feminist Activist, Vishakha, Jaipur
- Shahira Naim, Special Correspondent, The Tribune, Lucknow
- Aiman Khan, Bangalore
- Varsha Mehta
- Roshni, Research Scholar, Tata Institute of Social Sciences
- Pallavi Sobti Rajpal, Ahmedabad
- Meher Bhoot, WDC, University of Mumbai, Mumbai
- Kusumtai Chaudhari Mahila Kalyani C/o Snehja Rupwate
- Anupama Potluri, Assistant Professor, University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad
- Minakshi Sanyal, Queer feminist activist, Kolkat
- Poushali Basak, FAOW, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai
- Anita Rego, Social Researcher
- Smita Parmar, Social Activist, Hajipur, Bihar
- Swabhiman Lok Seva Sansthan run by Medical Mission Sisters
- Aruna Rodrigues,Environmental and Agro-ecology, Sunray Harvesters, MP
- Subhasat
- Bindu Doddahatti, Advocate, Bangalore
- Tejaswini Madabhushi, Hyderabad for Feminism
- A. Suneetha, Senior Fellow, Anveshi Research Center for Women’s Studies
- Dr. Asma Rasheed, Assistant Professor, EFL University
- Sumitra Anukram, Founder of Anukram
- Madhumita Sinha, EFL University, Hyderabad
- Sajaya K., Independent Journalist and Social Activist, Caring Citizens Collective
- Khalida Parveen, General Secretary Amoomat Society
- Madhavi Mirapa, Scholar
- Uma Bhrugubanda, EFL University, Hyderabad
- Jayasree Subramanian, Visiting Faculty, Homi Bhabha Center for Science Education, Mumbai
- Aileen Marques, Advocate Mumbai
- Pratibha Shinde, Lok Sangharsh Morcha, Nandurbar, Maharashtra
- Bittu K., Women Against Sexual Violence and State Repression, Telangana Hijra Intersex Trans Samiti, Asawarpur, Haryana
- Tara Murali, Architect, Chennai
- Padma, Human Rights Activist
- Samar Bagchi, Educationist and Former Director, Birla Industrial and Technological Museum, Kolkata
- Nandini Rao, Feminist Trainer and Activist, Women Against Sexual Violence and State Repression, New Delhi
- Sandeep Pandey, Socialist Activist and NAPM, UP
- M. Mandakini, Lawyer
- Kondaveeti Satyavati Bhumika, Hyderabad
- Sherin B.S., English and Foreign Languages University
- Lawrence, President, Inigo Foundation
- Madhurima Majumder, Assistant Professor, Rajiv Gandhi National Institute of Youth Development
- Shyamala Nataraj, South India AIDS Action Programme
- Anupama J, Counselor
- M.Sujatha, SPERDS NGO
- Jayna Kothari, Senior Advocate
- Bindulakshmi, Mumbai
- Suresh Melettukochy, Bhopal
- Jai Sen, Researcher and Editor, New Delhi
- Shubhada Deshmukh, Mahila Arogya Parishad, Gadchiroli, Maharashtra
- Sana Contractor, Public Health Researcher, New Delhi
- Nandita Gandhi, Activist, Mumbai
- Manisha Gupte, Feminist, MASUM, Pune
- Madhu Madhavan, Ex. JJP Member, Current PhD student from Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai
- Vimalbhai, Matu Jan Sangatgan, Uttarakhand
- Mamta Singh, Social Worker, Women Rights Activist, Lucknow, UP
- Rama Melkote, Prof.(Retd) or Political Science, Senior Activist, Osmania University, Hyderabad
- S Jeevan Kumar, Human Rights Forum
- K Sudha, Assistant Professor, DSNLU, Member, Human Rights Forum
- K Anuradha, Human Rights Forum
- Janaki Nair, JNU, New Delhi
- Sujata Patel, Indian Institute of Advanced Study
- Sukla Sen, Mumbai
- K. Kiran Mayee, Advocate
- V. Naga Lakshmi, Advocate
- Mohammed Shakeel, Advocate
- Ranjana, Women against Sexual Violence and State Repression, Bhubaneswar
- Kalpana Karunakaran, IIT Madras
- Kavitha Muralidharan, Journalist, Chennai
- Meera Velayudhan, Policy Analyst, Kochi
- Prema Revati, Educationist
- Rachana Mudraboyina, Telangana Hijra Intersex Transgender Samiti
- Vasudha Katju, Researcher, New Delhi
- Aisha Farooqui, Prof. (Retd) Osmania University
- Swathy Margaret, Researcher
- S. Ashalatha, Social Activist
- Radhika Khajuria, New Delhi
- Purwa Bharadwaj, Delhi
- Ketki Ranade, Mumbai
- Asha Achuthan, Mumbai
- Vineeta Bal, Pune.
- Anjali Rawat, Law Researcher
- Anubha Rastogi, Lawyer, Mumbai
- Madhu Bhushan
- Aatreyee Sen, Forum for Human Rights and Justice, Himachal Pradesh
- Pragya Joshi, PUCL, Udaipur
- Dr. Albertina Almeida, Advocate, Goa.
- Vennela Madabhushi, Lawyer, Bangalore
- Anuradha Pati, Development Professional
- Soma KP, Independent Research Scholar
- Lata Singh, JNU
- Urmilla Chandran, Principal Technical Writer
- Kaneez Fatima, Activist and Librarian
- Kalyani Menon-Sen, Feminist Learning Partnerships
- Masooma Ranalvi, We SpeakOut
- Srinivas Vellikad, Senior Manager, Documentation.
- S. Seethalakshmi, Researcher
- Lakshmi Lingam, Professor, Mumbai
- Sunkara Rajendra Prasad, Advocate, Vijayawada
- Vahida Nainar, Mumbai
- Laxmi Murthy, Journalist, Bangalore
- Jayasree.A K., Professor, Community Medicine, Govt. Medical College, Kannur, Kerala
- Shaitan Singh, Law Student, Visakhapatnam
- Anjana Ramanathan, Advocate
- Piyoli Swatija, Advocate
- VS Krishna, Human Rights Forum
- Smita Gupta, New Delhi
- Geeta Seshu, Journalist
- Lakshmi Krishnamurthy
- Reva Yunus, Azim Premji University
- Ritu Dewan, Vice President at Indian Society of Labour Economics
- Sarojini.N, New Delhi
- Brinelle D’souza, TISS
- Deeptha Achar, Professor, Baroda
- Shilpaa Anand, BITS- Pilani, Hyderabad campus
- Shefali Jha, University of Hyderabad
- M. Madhavi, Assistant Professor, Presidency University, Bangalore
- Kumar Shubham Raj, Advocate, Bihar
- Bushra Quasmi, Asst Prof, DSNLU, Visakhapatnam
- B Syama Sundari, Dastakar Andhra
- Abha Bhaiya, Jagori
- Ambika Tandon, New Delhi
- Anandhi.S, Researcher, Chennai
- Shalini Gera, Advocate, Bilaspur High Court
- Govind Kelkar, Senior Advisor – Women, Land & Productive Assets
- Sharmila Sreekumar, IIT, Bangalore
- PV Srividya, Journalist, Krishnagiri
- K. Katyayani, Prof (Retd), Kakatitya University, Warangal
- Deepa V health Activist, Delhi
- Sunita Sheel, Forum for Medical Ethics Society, Mumbai; Vidhayak Trust, Pune
- Anuradha Kapoor, Kolkata
- Veena Johari, Advocate, Mumbai
- Mumtaz Sheikh, CORO Mahila Mandal federation Mumbai
- Rohini Hensman, Writer & Researcher
- Dr Sagari R Ramdas, Veterinary Scientist
- Tashi Choedup, Buddhist Monastic, Human Rights Activist
- Aditi Joshi, Mumbai
- Amarjit Singh, Mumbai
- Kaveri Dadhich, Mumbai
- Padma, Independent Researcher , Mumbai
- Shakun Doundiyakhed, Ooty
- R. Alphonso, Mumbai
- Neha Singh, Mumbai
- Shewli Kumar, Mumbai
- Bharati Kapadia, Mumbai
- Bindhulakshmi Pattadath, Mumbai
- Catrinel Dunca, Ahmedabad
- Nirja Vasavada, Ahmedabad
- Shumona Goel
- Mani A., Kolkata
- Kamaxi Bhate, Mumbai
- Mridul Dudeja, Mumbai
- Rakhi Sehgal, Labour Activist, New Delhi
- Gayatri, Faculty, TISS, Hyderabad
- Abhiti Gupta, Legal Activist, New Delhi
- Maneka Khanna, Advocate, Delhi
- Surabhi Dhar, Advocate, Delhi
- Zeba Sikora, Advocate, Mumbai
- Rupali Samuel, Advocate, Delhi
- Payoshi Roy, Advocate, Mumbai
- Archit Krishna, Advocate, Chattisgarh
- Satnam Kaur, New Delhi
- Reethika Ravikumar, Mumbai
- Mini Mathew, Advocate, Mumbai
- Sadhna Arya, University of Delhi
- Fatima N, Tamil Nadu
- Poorva Rajaram, Researcher, New Delhi
- Vanessa Chishti, Jindal Law University, Sonipat
- Esther Moraes, New Delhi
- Niti Saxena, Lawyer, Researcher, and Activist, Lucknow
- Tusharika Mattoo, Advocate, Delhi
- Maulshree Pathak, Advocate Delhi
- Shreya Munoth, Advocate, Delhi
- Sayali Kadu, Advocate, Delhi
- Shuchi Dwivedi, Advocate, Delhi
- Rhea Goyal, Advocate, Delhi
- Sowjhanya Shankaran, Advocate, Delhi
- Anushree Malviya, Advocate, Delhi
- Sonal Sarda, Advocate, Delhi
- Sanya Kumar, Advocate, Delhi
- Shreya Rastogi, Advocate, Delhi
- Harshita Reddy, Advocate, Delhi
- Sanjana Srikumar, Advocate, Delhi
- Avantika,AdvocateDelhi
- Ninni Susan Thomas, Advocate Delhi
- Nidhi Rao Gummuluru, Advocate, Delhi
- Vasundhara Majithia, Advocate Delhi
- MeghanaSengupta, Advocate Delhi
- Shailiza Sharma, Advocate, Delhi High Court
- Kanika Sood, Advocate Delhi
- KrutiVenkatesh, Advocate, Bombay High Court
- Bhavana Sunder, Advocate, Bombay High Court
- Rhea Jha, Advocate, Bombay High Court
- Devyani Kulkarni, Advocate, High Court, Bombay
- Khusboo Agarwal, Bombay
- Sara Ahmed, Bombay
- Surabhi Singh, Advocate, High Court at Bombay
- Ronita Bhattacharya, Advocate, High Court, Bombay
- Jahnavi Vishwanath, Chennai
- Janaki Abraham, Delhi University
- Dimple Oberoi Vahali
- Vandana Mahajan, A Feminist Practitioner
- Lalita Ramdas, Educator and Citizen, Alibag, Maharashtra
- Chitra Sinha, Centre for Gender Research, Uppsala University, Sweden
- Vasudha Sawaiker, Social Justice Action Committee, Goa
- Amita Kanekar, Writer, Goa
- Adsa Fatima, Health Activist, Delhi
- Dr Mira Shiva
- Dr. Saswati Ghosh, Academic and Activist, Kolkata
- Amita Pitre, Consultant, Public Health and Gender Justice, Mumbai
- Gayatri Singh, Senior Advocate, Bombay High Court
- Bindhulakshmi, Mumbai
- Radhika Desai, Hyderabad
- Ritu Menon, New Delhi
- Shraddha Chickerur, Hyderabad
- Svati Joshi, Ahmedabad
- Aruna Burte, Pune
- Malavika Karlekar, New Delhi
- Sujata Gothoskar, Trade Union Activist, Mumbai
- Nalini Nair, SEWA, Kerala
- Sangeeta Chatterji, FAOW
- Nisha, National Convenor, WSS
- Ajita, National Convenor, WSS
- Shalini, National Convenor, WSS
- Rinchin, National Convenor, WSS
- Hiranmay Karlekar, New Delhi
- Rina Mukerji, Independent Journalist
- Vibhuti Patel, Mumbai
- Kavita Krishnan, AIPWA, New Delhi
- Swarna Rajgopalan, Chennai
- Chittaroopa Palit, Madhya Pradesh
- Bondita Acharya, Human Rights Activist, Assam
- Bela Bhatia, Bastar
- AI Sharada, Laadli, Population First
- Amit Mitra, New Delhi
- Sujata Mody, National Secretary, New Delhi Trade Union Initiative
- M. Dilli, Joint Secretary, Garment and Fashion Workers Union, Chennai
- Anju Talukdar, Independent law and development professional, New Delhi
- Vidha Saumya, Visual Artist, Oshiwara, Mumbai
- Jasveen Jairath, Consultant, Water and Ecology, Concerned Citizens, Hyderabad
- Shreya Suresh, Advocate, Bangalore
- Sowmya Khandelwal, Associate at a Law Firm, Bangalore
- M.V. Swaroop, Advocate, Madras High Court
- Tashi Choedip, Queer Buddhist Activist, Bodhgaga, Bihar
- Mangla Verma, Advocate, New Delhi
- Chitra Narayan, Advocate, Chennai
- Anusha Ramanathan, Visiting Faculty, University of Mumbai, Consultant, TISS
- Richa, Humsafar, Lucknow
- Sunila Singh, Woman Human Rights Defender, New Delhi
- Zainab, Humsafar, Lucknow
- Afroz Jahan, Humsafar, Lucknow
- Anurekha, Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad
- Lalita, National Alliance of Women’s Organizations, Odisha
- Sister Lissy Joseph, National Domestic Workers Movement, Hyderabad
- Nikhat Fatima, Journal Activist
- Vasundhara Vedula, Mumbai
- Swatija Manorama, Mumbai
- Amrita Howlader, Kolkata
- Nazia Akhter, Hyderabad
- Swarup Beria, Guwahati
- Arpita Jaya, Quill Foundation
- Sheela Rahulan, Vanithakalasahithi, Trivandrum
- Dr. Iris Koileo, Associate Professor (Retd.), St. Xavier’s College, Women Writers Group, Vinimaya, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala
- Rita Manchanda
- Noella de Souza
- Jeevika Shiv, Lawyer
- Suroor Mander
- Angbin Yasmin, New Delhi
- Sujata Surepally, Hyderabad
- Pushpesh Kumar, Hyderabad
- Simrita Gopal Singh, Pune
- Suneeta Dhar, Delhi
- Chanda Asani, Jaipur
- Saumya Uma, Delhi
- Debika Chakravarty, Mumbai
- Supriya Jan, CORO India, Mumbai
- Huma Ghosh
- Amrita Nandy
- Deepti Sharma, New Delhi