India’s first woman Supreme Court judge, Justice Fathima Beevi, died on Thursday at the age of 96.

Justice Beevi was also appointed as the Governor of Tamil Nadu after her retirement as a Supreme Court judge.

Kerala Health Minister Veena George regretted her death, saying that Justice Beevi’s death was extremely painful.

The minister said Justice Beevi made her mark as the first woman judge of the Supreme Court and as the Governor of Tamil Nadu.

“She was a courageous woman who had many successes. She was a figure who demonstrated in her own life that willpower and determination can overcome any adversity,” George said in a statement.

About Fathima Beevi

Accordingly Live LawJustice Fathima Beevi earned her Bachelor of Law from the Government Law College and enrolled as a lawyer on November 14, 1950.

She began her career in the lower judiciary of Kerala in 1950 and soon rose through the ranks of the Munsiff in the subordinate judicial services of Kerala, as a subordinate judge, as a chief justice, as a district and sessions judge and as a member of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal.

Judge Beevi became a Supreme Court Justice in 1983 and a Supreme Court Justice in 1989.

She was also the first Muslim judge to be appointed to a higher judiciary.

After her retirement, Justice Beevi was initially a member of the National Human Rights Commission and later she was appointed Governor of Tamil Nadu.

Justice Beevi was also Chancellor of Tamil Nadu University during her tenure as Governor of the State.

She has been awarded the Bharat Jyoti Award and the US-India Business Council (USIBC) Lifetime Achievement Award.