The Constitutional Council (CC) on Sunday recommended senior-most Justice Sushila Karki as the chief justice of the Supreme Court. Karki will be the country’s first female chief of the judiciary.

A meeting of the council which was deferred earlier in the day in the absence of Speaker Onsari Gharti, who became ill, took the decision in the evening with her consent. Karki will take charge once the President appoints her after the CC nod.

Incumbent CJ Kalyan Shrestha retires on Wednesday. Traditionally, the chief justice goes on a leave a month before his term expires. Karki’s nomination is considered yet another milestone in women’s leadership in the state mechanism. Last year, Nepal elected Bidhya Devi Bhandari as the President and Onsari Gharti as the Speaker of Parliament.

Karki is known for her zero tolerance against corruption in the judiciary. Born in June, 1952 in Biratnagar, she holds a post-graduate degree in political science from Banaras Hindu University, India, and a law degree from Tribhuvan University. She will remain at the helm for about 13 months.