Thanya Nathan (Blind Kerala Judge) Age, Family, Biography

Some Lesser Known Facts About Thanya Nathan

• Thanya Nathan was born blind and grew up in Mangad village in Kannur district, Kerala, and studied initially in specialised institutions for visually impaired students.

• She later moved to mainstream schools for higher education and decided to pursue law during her higher secondary education years.

• She joined Kannur University for her LLB degree and was the only visually impaired student in her batch during the course.

• In 2024, she graduated from Kannur University after securing first rank in her LLB examination.

• She studied law using Braille textbooks, digital materials, and screen-reading software, as printed study material was largely inaccessible to her.

• After completing her law degree, she enrolled as an advocate in August 2024.

• Nathan began practising as a junior advocate under K G Sunilkumar at the Taliparamba district court in Kannur.

• During her legal practice, she prepared case notes and argument notes in Braille script and used assistive technology for reading documents.

• In August 2024, she started preparing for the Kerala Judicial Service examination while continuing her regular court practice.

• She prepared for the exam alongside practice, without discontinuing her work as an advocate.

• At the time, a three-year minimum practice rule existed, but she applied when the judicial service notification was issued.

• In 2025, a Supreme Court judgment ruled that visually impaired persons are eligible for judicial service examinations without discrimination.

• The Supreme Court bench stated that disability alone cannot be a reason to deny candidates participation in judicial service recruitment.

• Following this judgment, she was permitted to appear for the Kerala Civil Judge (Junior Division) examination.

• During the examination, recruiting authorities provided her with a scribe who read questions aloud and wrote answers dictated by her.

• The examination environment was arranged to accommodate her visual impairment and ensure fair participation.

• In the Kerala Judicial Service examination 2025, she ranked first in the merit list among persons with benchmark disabilities.

• Joyson Sajan, a candidate with cerebral palsy, secured second rank in the same benchmark disability category.

• Nathan became the first visually challenged woman to clear the judicial service examination in Kerala.

• Judicial sources stated that there were no visually challenged judges serving in Kerala before her selection.

• The Kerala High Court completed the selection process and forwarded the list to the state government for appointment orders.

• She secured 206.5 marks in 4 papers and 29 marks in the viva-voce section of the written exam.

• As of February 2026, she was awaiting her official appointment letter from the Government of Kerala.

• She is expected to be appointed as a Civil Judge (Junior Division) in the Kerala Judicial Service.

• Nathan stated in an interview that courtroom practice helped her understand procedural law and practical application beyond theoretical study.

• She said judicial examinations and courtroom functioning are becoming more accessible due to digitisation and paperless systems.