In a first, visually challenged woman to become a judge in State

In a first, visually challenged woman to become a judge in State

24-year-old Thanya Nathan C. has been ranked first on the merit list of persons with benchmark disabilities in the recently held judicial service examination for the selection of Civil Judges (Junior Division) in the Kerala Judicial Service. Joyson Sajan, with cerebral palsy, has come second

K.S. Sudhi KOCHI

hanya Nathan C., T lawyer, will shortly enter the annals of Kerala’s judicial history as the first visually challenged woman judge.

Ms. Nathan, who is totally blind, was ranked first on the merit list of persons with benchmark disabilities in the recently held judicial service examination for the selection of Civil Judges (Junior Division) in the Kerala Judicial Service. Joyson Sajan, with cerebral palsy, came second.

R. Mahadevan in 2025 that paved the way for Ms. Nathan to become a judge. The Bench had held that people with disabilities “should not face any discrimination in their Court Bench consisting of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and instead, there should be affirmative action on behalf of the State to pursuit of judicial service opportunities, and provide an inclusive framework.”

“This should probably be for the first time that a candidate with visual disability is clearing the

judicial service examination in Kerala.

Currently, there are no visually challenged judges in Kerala,” judicial sources said.

The Kerala High Court has completed the selection process and the list has been forwarded to the government, which will issue the appointment letter, sources said.

An LLB rank-holder

Overcoming her limitation as a person with no light perception, 24-year-old Ms. Nathan secured first rank in her LLB examination from Kannur University. She began her

legal practice as a junior to K.G. Sunilkumar at Taliparamba in Kannur.

“My senior and a few others encouraged me to take the recruitment exam, and the Supreme Court verdict came in as the right support. I studied law using texts with the Braille system.

Now, technology has come to the aid of people like me, where screen-reading software help us read texts,” Ms. Nathan told The Hindu.

“As a lawyer, I used to prepare the argument notes in Braille script. Accessing the old documents, which could

not be read by software, could be one hassle that I may encounter in future. Accessibility could be a major hurdle in courtrooms. Yet, I am confident of overcoming the challenges,” she said.

The upcoming appointment of Ms. Nathan also poses challenges to the Kerala judiciary to make the judicial process, the justice dispensation system and the physical

infrastructure, including court halls, dais, offices and chambers accessible to differently abled persons, according to judicial sources.

Thanya Nathan C.

It was a landmark

judgment by a Supreme