Ex-CJI SC judge pay tribute to late advocate Lilly Thomas

New Delhi, Jul 26 (PTI) Former chief justice of India KG Balakrishnan and ex-Supreme Court judge A K Patnaik on Friday paid tributes to late advocate Lilly Thomas, terming her a "pioneer" in the legal field.
     The justices were speaking at the 4th Lily Thomas memorial lecture, organised by the Supreme Court Woman Lawyers' Association, along with the office of Lily Thomas and Saju Jakob.
     Thomas was an activist lawyer, who in 2013, at the age of 85, won a landmark verdict (Lily Thomas Vs Union of India) from the Supreme Court that struck down a provision in the Representation of the People Act (1951).
     While holding Section 8(4) of the RPA as unconstitutional, the top court held that a person who has been convicted of a criminal offence and sentenced to a minimum of two years in prison would be disqualified from contesting elections or holding public office from the date of conviction.
     Thomas was one of the first women lawyers in the country and paved the way for a new generation of female lawyers.
     She filed numerous public interest litigations advocating for women's rights. She died in 2019.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)