Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, Oct.2: Justice DY Chandrachud of the Supreme Court today lauded women lawyers for their role in the #MeToo Movement, a global campaign that urged survivors to speak up about their sexual harassment experiences.
“Lawyers who are passionate about a certain subject can commit their time to provide legal aid in that field. In the #MeToo movement, for example, young women lawyers aided women who had been sexually harassed,” he said.
He made these statements at the commencement of the National Legal Services Authority’s (NALSA) “Pan India Legal Awareness and Outreach Campaign”. The six-week campaign will take place across India, with the goal of raising awareness of legal aid services in even the most distant parts of the country.
The #MeToo movement was one of the most prominent feminist initiatives of the decade, with women all over the world, including celebrities and activists, utilising the hashtag #MeToo to combat the stigma associated with being a sexual abuse survivor on social media.
The global campaign, which has received a lot of support in India, focuses on sexual survivors’ rehabilitation, raising awareness about the legal battle, and the challenge they confront in the face of stigma.
“The Bar Council of India could possibly include a rule requiring lawyers to renew their practice after a specific number of pro-bono cases. That would go a long way toward supplementing legal aid,” he added.
“Transgender people, for example, experience social shame and are rejected by their own relatives. It is difficult for them to obtain legal assistance. If there are lawyers who specialise in those types of matters, they might be able to assist them with legal aid “Justice Chandrachud emphasised.