For the first time in its more than a century-old history, the Punjab and Haryana High Court now has 19 women judges on its bench with the swearing-in of nine additional judges, including three women — Monica Chhibber Sharma, Puja Chopra and Divya Sharma.The other judges administered the oath by Acting Chief Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra are Haryana Advocate-General Pravindra Singh Chauhan, along with Harmeet Singh Deol, Rajesh Gaur, Jattvibeish Bindlish, Minderjeet Yadav and Ravinder MalikTheir appointment as additional judges was notified by the Centre on Thursday, more than three months after the Supreme Court collegium recommended their elevation. Justice Mishra administered the oath to the judges at a simple yet impressive ceremony in the High Court attended by sitting and retired Judges, bureaucrats, relatives of the new appointees and members of the legal fraternity.The previous highest in the common High Court for Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh was 18 women judges, while the figure had earlier touched 13.The women judges currently on the bench include Justice Alka Sarin, Justice Archana Puri, Justice Lapita Banerji, Justice Nidhi Gupta, Justice Amarjot Bhatti, Justice Manisha Batra, Justice Harpreet Kaur Jeewan, Justice Sukhvinder Kaur, Justice Sudeepti Sharma, Justice Kirti Singh, Justice Mandeep Pannu, Justice Rupinderjit Chahal, Justice Shalini Singh Nagpal, Justice Aaradhna Sawhney, Justice Ramesh Kumari and Justice Neerja K. Kalson.The unprecedented presence of 19 women judges marks a significant shift in the institution’s composition.Available information suggests greater gender representation on the bench is bound to bring a more sensitive and inclusive approach in cases concerning women, children, and issues of gender justice. It is also seen as a step towards balancing perspectives within the judiciary and making the system more reflective of the society it serves.Justice Mishra’s name has also been cleared by the Supreme Court collegium for appointment as regular Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court and notification by the Centre is expected soon.Chauhan’s appointment as an additional judge has also heated up the race for the next advocate-general of Haryana. With Chauhan moving to the bench, the state government will now have to choose a new “top” law officer to head its legal team and represent it before the Supreme Court and the high court.The appointments come at a time when the high court is grappling with an enormous docket and a continuing shortage of judges. Against a sanctioned strength of 85, the court had been functioning with only 55 judges, with more than 4.22 lakh cases pending adjudication. Of these, 2,55,274 are civil matters and 1,67,587 criminal cases.The appointments were made by the President in exercise of the powers conferred by the Constitution after consultation with the Chief Justice of India, Justice Surya Kant.The Punjab and Haryana High Court, which exercises jurisdiction over Punjab, Haryana and the Union Territory of Chandigarh, is among the largest constitutional courts in the country.The appointments are, therefore, being viewed as an important step towards addressing the manpower deficit and reducing the burden of pendency, though a sizeable gap between the sanctioned and working strength is likely to persist for the foreseeable future.