 "Justice Fathima Beevi")
Justice Fathima Beevi, India's first woman judge to be appointed to the Supreme Court, died on Thursday at a private hospital in Kerala's Kollam. She was 96.
Kerala's Health Minister Veena George condoled her death by saying that the demise of Justice Beevi was extremely painful. The minister said that Justice Beevi made a mark as the first woman judge of the Supreme Court and as the Tamil Nadu Governor.
"She was a brave woman who had many records to her name. She was a personality who through her own life showed that willpower and a sense of purpose can overcome any adversity," George said in a statement.
About Justice Fathima Beevi
Born in Kerala's Pathanamthitta in April 1927, Beevi graduated from the University College, Trivandrum and studied law at the Law College in Trivandrum.
She enrolled as an advocate in November 1950 and worked her way up to become a district and sessions judge in 1974. She was elevated to the High Court in 1983 and became a permanent judge a year later.
She made history after she was elevated to the Supreme Court as a judge in 1989. She retired in 1992. After retiring, she served as a member of the National Human Rights Commission from 1993 to 1997 before becoming the Governor of Tamil Nadu till 2001. She was also awarded the Bharat Jyoti Award and the US-India Business Council (USIBC) Lifetime Achievement Award.
