He was speaking at an event organised by the National Legal Services Authority on ‘Empowerment of women through legal awareness’ on October 31.

“Just two days ago, all of you would know of the advertisement that a company was required to pull down… it was an advertisement for karwa chauth of a same-sex couple… it had to be withdrawn on the ground of public intolerance,” Justice Chandrachud said.

He spoke about the advertisement while talking about why it is important to ensure legal awareness on the rights of women.

“Our Constitution is a transformative document that sought to remedy the structural inequalities rooted in patriarchy. It has become a powerful tool to secure material entitlements and provide public affirmations of dignity and equality of women,” Chandrachud said.

The advertisement, of a fairness bleach brand owned by Dabur, was withdrawn by the firm after it faced backlash on social media and from Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Narottam Mishra, among others. On October 25, Mishra had said that he had asked the state police chief to review the advertisement, saying its portrayal of a lesbian couple performing the ritual was “objectionable”.

On Sunday, speaking at the event, Justice Chandrachud said, “The Supreme Court has recently opened the doors for women to join the armed forces. But how does a woman access the armed forces? How does she become a member of the armed forces? How does she become a judicial officer? So legal awareness has to be spread about these avenues for women to enter the workplace,” he said.

Justice Chandrachud headed the bench that delivered a landmark verdict in February that directed that women officers in the Army be granted permanent commission on a par with their male counterparts.

In October, another bench led by Justice Chandrachud directed the Centre to grant permanent commission to 39 women Army officers.