Advocates' Association of Western India to reserve presidency for women

The Advocates' Association of Western India (AAWI), a bar body at the Bombay High Court, has unanimously approved constitutional amendments to reserve its presidency for women. This decision marks the first time in the association’s 162-year history that a woman will hold the highest office.

Under the new rules, the presidency will be reserved for a woman once every three election cycles. Additionally, the post of secretary will be reserved for a woman during the first of the two non-reserved presidential terms. These changes follow a report from a Constitutional Amendment Committee tasked with increasing female participation in executive leadership.

The association is building on previous reforms from 2018, which reserved one vice-president post and two executive council seats for women. The new framework also expands the executive council and mandates specific female representation within the council members.