The first woman judge of the Supreme Court, Justice Fathima Beevi, passed away at a private hospital in Kerala’s Kollam on Thursday at the age of 96.
Justive Beevi had also served as the governor of Tamil Nadu from 1997 to 2001. After rejecting the mercy petitions filed by the four condemned prisoners in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, she had quit from her role as the governor.
Beevi started her legal profession at the Kollam district court in 1950 after passing out as a gold medalist in her batch of LLB. After eight years, she joined the judicial service as a magistrate and went on to become the district sessions judge in 1974.
She was appointed as a judge of the Kerala High Court in 1983 and was elevated to a judge of the Supreme Court in 1989.
After retiring from the Supreme Court in 1993, she served as a member of the National Human Rights Commission and also as the Tamil Nadu governor.
Her appointment as the first woman judge of the Supreme Court inspired a generation of women to pursue legal studies.
