Neeru Chadha first Indian woman elected to world body on maritime disputes

Neeru Chadha became Wednesday the first Indian woman elected as a judge to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), an intergovernmental body that

Neeru Chadha became Wednesday the first Indian woman elected as a judge to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), an intergovernmental body that arbitrates maritime disputes. She will serve a nine-year term ending in 2026.

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She is only the second ever woman Judge of the Hamburg-based ITLOS in its two decades of existence and, the Indian permanent mission to the United Nation said in a statement also secured the highest ever votes obtained by an Indian candidate to the ITLOS.

Chadha, who is a leading expert on international law in India, is also the first woman chief legal adviser to the Government of India. The mission said she also has extensive international arbitration and litigation experience, having served as agent for the Indian government in its maritime delimitation case with Bangladesh.

Chadha holds law degrees including PhD in law from the University of Delhi and the University of Michigan.

Judge P Chandrasekhara Rao, the current Indian member of the 21-judge tribunal, completes his term this year.