Legal Luminaries

Mr. Ashok H. Desai is a Senior Advocate practicing in the Supreme Court of India. Between 1996 and 1998, he was Attorney General for India and in 1989-90 the Solicitor-General of India. He completed his LL.B. Degree from Law College, Bombay before attending the London School of Economics and thereafter being called to Lincoln's Inn. He was the Chairman of the Committee on Administrative Law of International Bar Association in 1986-88 and Consultant to the Commonwealth Workshop on Administrative Law at Lusaka, Zambia in 1990. In 1997, Mr. Desai presented India's Report to the United Nations Committee on Human Rights in Geneva and in 1998, he led the Indian delegation to the United Nations Preparatory Committee on Money Laundering Bill in Vienna. Among other positions he has held are: Legal Correspondent, Times of India, and Professor, Law College, Bombay and Bombay College of Journalism. In 2001, he was awarded the Padma Bhushan and the Law Luminary Award. Among his publications, he has contributed to “Constitutional Laws of India” (Arnold-Heinemann Publishers, 1986) “Democracy, Human Rights and the Rule of Law” (Butterworths 2000), “Final but fallible – Essays on the Supreme Court of India” (2000), “Bombay High Court” (2003) and “Evoking Mr. Seervai” (2005). He delivered the Annie Beasant Lecture on Secularism in Chennai (2004) and the Prem Bhatia Lecture on Dangers to our Democracy (2005). Mr. Desai is the Vice President, Bar Association of India and President, Inns of Court (India) Society.

K. PARASARAN

Shri K. Parasaran, Senior Advocate, was born on October 9, 1927. He passed his SSLC in the year 1942 from Hindu High School, Madras and completed his graduation in 1949 from Presidency College, Madras. He went on to complete his degree in Law in 1949 from Law College, Madras. He had been awarded Shri Justice C.V. Kumaraswami Sastri Sanskrit Medal in B.A. and Justice Shri V. Bhashyam Iyengar Gold Medal in Hindu Law in B.L. He was also the recipient of Justice Shri K.S. Krishnaswami Iyengar Medal in the Bar Council examination.

Shri Parasaran enrolled in the Supreme Court of India in 1958. He was appointed the Central Government Senior Standing Counsel in the Madras High Court in 1971. On 17 th June, 1976, he was appointed Advocate-General of Tamil Nadu but he resigned after a year in June 1977. He was appointed the Solicitor General of India in February, 1980 and held that post from 6 th March, 1980 to 8 th August, 1983. From 9 th August, 1983 to November, 1989, he was appointed the Attorney General for India.

Shri Parasaran has held many important positions. He was the President, Indian Society of Criminology from 1984 to 1985; President, Bar Association of India from 1984 to 1987; Leader of the Indian Delegation visiting New York in March, 1984 to present India's Report before the UN Human Rights Committee; Head of the Indian Team settling the dispute between the Union of India and the Union Carbide, USA as a result of Bhopal Gas Leak Disaster, since 1984 and Member of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at the Hague in 1986.

Shri Parasaran was awarded an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Laws form Annamalai University in 1989. He has been nominated as a Member of the National Commission for Review of the Working of the Constitution.

In the year 2003, Shri Parasaran was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the President of India.

JUSTICE H. R. KHANNA

Mr. Justice Hans Raj Khanna, Born on July 3, 1912; Educated at D.A.V. High School, Amritsar (1918 to 1928); Hindu College, Amritsar (1928 to 1930); Khalsa College, Amritsar (1930 to 1932); Law College, Lahore (1932 to 1934); enrolled as Pleader; Practised at Amritsar till January, 1952 when appointed District and Sessions Judge, Ferozepore; As District and Sessions Judge, Ambala was appointed Commission of Inquiry in connection with the firing at Kalka Railway Station in 1956; As Special Judge, tried Ram Kishan Dalmia and others; Was District and Sessions Judge, Delhi till 1962 when appointed Judge of Punjab High Court; On formation of Delhi High Court became Judge of that Court; Held inquiry into charges against Shri Biju Patnaik and other Ministers in Orissa; Chief Justice of Delhi High Court from 1969 till September, 1971 when appointed Judge of the Supreme Court. Resigned on 12.3.1977.

K. K. VENUGOPAL

M r. K.K. Venugopal, Senior Advocate, was born in September, 1931. He enrolled as an Advocate in January, 1954. In 1972 he was designated as a Senior Advocate of India by the Supreme Court.

He was appointed the Additional Solicitor General of India from 1979 - 1980.

He has held many important positions. He served as the President, Supreme Court Bar Association of India in 1990 - 1991, 1994 - 1995 and 1999 - 2000.

In 1995 he was appointed as President of SAARC LAW (The International Association of Lawyers of the SAARC Countries) and in 1996 as President of Union Internationale des Avocats (The oldest among international associations of lawyers, with headquarters at Paris). He has also been appointed as Vice-President of Bar Association of India. He is member of Executive Council and The General Council of the West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences, Kolkata; a prestigious Member of General Council of the National Academy of Legal Studies and Research University of Law (NALSAR), Hyderabad; Member of Academic Council of the National Judicial Academy; Member of National Legal Services Authority. He is also the Honorary Member of American Bar Association. He is a prominent speaker and has delivered a number of lectures, such as, a series of Lectures on Constitutional Law at the John Marshall Law School, Chicago, USA, 1986; Justice V.R.Krishna Iyer Lecture 2003 at the National Law University, Jodhpur; 8 th Dr. Zakir Husain Memorial Lecture, 2005. He has also bagged many awards. In 1997 he has received the “Grand Cross” award and medal from the Bar Association of Bagota, Columbia, as well as a medal and citation from the Bar Associations of Buenos Aires and Matanza, Argentina, in recognition of his achievement in human rights and legal multi-lingualism and multi-culturalism. He received the Global Award 2003 from the Chief Minister of Kerala, and the Eswara Iyer “Distinguished Lawyer” from the Kerala Bar Federation. He has also been conferred the most Prestigious Award of the country “Padma Bhushan” in 2002, by the President of India.

Dr. L. M. SINGHVI

Dr. Laxmi Mall Singhvi, born 9 November, 1931, is an eminent jurist, a leading constitutional expert, an expert in public and private international law, a distinguished parliamentarian, a highly respected intellectual, a prominent exponent of human rights, a doyen of the Indian Bar, a citizen-statesman, an author, poet, publicist, linguist and litterateur.

Dr. Singhvi was Member of Lok Sabha (1962-1967) and Rajya Sabha (1998-2004) and is Senior Advocate, Supreme Court of India.

Educated at, associated with and honoured by different universities in India (Rajasthan, Allahabad, Calcutta, Delhi, Osmania, Andhra, Tamil Nadu and Jabalpur Universities), U.S.A. (Harvard, Cornell and Berkeley), and U.K. (Cambridge, Oxford, Hull London, Edinburgh, De Montford, North London, Westminster, Buckingham and several other universities).

Dr. Singhvi was elected as President of the Supreme Court Bar Association, on more occasions than any other leader of the Bar except the late Mr. M.C. Setalvad. It was he who conceived and founded Law Day, which is widely observed by the Bench and the Bar in India on November 26 each year.

Dr. Singhvi was associated with and consulted in the drafting of the constitutions of Bangladesh, Nepal and South Africa. He is at present a Commissioner of Inquiry into the Administration of Justice in Trinidad and Tobago. He has also been invited by UNDP to advise countries of Africa for sustaining and strengthening Democracy through Rule of Law.

Dr. Singhvi was elected Honorary Tagore Law Professor in 1973 at Calcutta University, one of the oldest and most highly regarded Chairs in the world in the field of Law, and was the Founder-President (now Honorary Patron) of the Commonwealth Legal Education Association, London.

Elected as a member from Asia to serve on the World Comparative Constitutional Studies Committee of the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS), Dr. Singhvi advised and participated in the celebrations for the Bicentennial of the U.S. Constitution. He was also invited by the President of the Republic of France to join in commemorating the bicentennial of the French Revolution.

In recognition of his pre-eminent contribution to Public Law and Public Affairs, the President of India honoured him with the award of “Padma Bhushan” in January 1998.

In 1987 Dr. Singhvi was elected Honorary Bencher and Master of the Middle Temple, one of the highest honours in the gift of Judges and Lawyers in the U.K.

Dr. Singhvi was also elected in 1992 to the Rede Chair at Cambridge University. The Rede chair was founded in 1524 and was named after Sir Robert Rede, Lord Chief Justice of England. The Cambridge University Press has published Dr. Singhvi's lecture in the form of a book titled “A Tale of Three Cities.”

From early 1991 to the end of 1997, Dr. Singhvi was High Commissioner for India in the United Kingdom.

Dr. Singhvi was elected to the Indian Parliament (Third Lok Sabha) as an Independent Member for 1962-1967 from the Jodhpur Parliamentary constituency and became known as an outstanding parliamentarian who held many prominent posts with considerable distinction.

Dr. Singhvi was Advocate General from 1970 to 1977.

Dr. Singhvi is Chief Patron, Bharat Vikas Parishad (which has 800 branches in India and abroad); Patron, Bhogilal Leherchand Institute of Indology.

Dr. Singhvi is a poet, essayist and author. He is at home in many languages. He was President, Authors' Guild of India for nearly a decade.

Dr. Singhvi is regarded as one of the foremost constitutional experts in India.

In all he is a living legend.

MILON K. BANERJEE

Mr. Banerjee, 74, was enrolled as an advocate in 1955 and designated Senior Advocate in May, 1972. Besides regular appearances in the Supreme Court and other courts in the country, he has appeared in several international arbitrations. Mr. Banerjee was appointed the second Additional Solicitor-General of India in August 1979, was Solicitor General from 1986 to 1989 and Attorney General from November 1992 to July 1996. In the Ayodhya case, as Attorney General he was faced with a case of far- reaching significance. The judgment in the Ram Janambhoomi case, upholding the validity of the acquisition of certain areas in Ayodhya Act, 1993, was another landmark in his career. The National Awards, viz., Bharat Ratna and the Padma Awards, were revived by the Supreme Court after a long break, accepting Mr. Banerjee’s arguments and suggestions. He was also awarded with Padma Vibhushan in 2005. In 2006, he joined an illustrious club of jurists from India and abroad to be conferred the Honorary Bencher of Lincoln’s Inn in London, a prestigious and oldest body of jurists established 600 years ago. He was awarded the Prestigious Law Day Award (for evolution of Jurisprudence). He was also appointed as the Attorney General for India in 2004 for three years but recently in April, 2007 his term has been extended by two more years.

K.T.S. Tulsi,

Mr. K.T.S. Tulsi, Senior Advocate, was born in 1947 at Hoshiarpur, Punjab . Graduated with Hons. in Political Science from the Punjab University and completed his Bachelors in Law in 1971, when he was enrolled as a member of the Bar of Punjab & Haryana High Court.

Having been a keen debater in school and college, and a topper in moot courts in law, he decided that he would earn his bread by his spoken word. The initial years of practice were complimented by assignment as a part-time lecturer in law between 1973-76, during which time he also authored two books, Tulsi's Digest of Accident Claims Cases and Goswami and Tulsi's Landlord & Tenant Cases. In 1976, he was appointed a reporter of the Indian Law Reports (Punjab Series). Even though Mr. Tulsi practiced in courts far and wide, from Guwahati and Calcutta to Bombay and Simla, he still got addicted to writing on law and has published hundreds of articles in Law Journals and Newspapers.
From 1980 onwards, Mr. Tulsi gradually drifted to the field of criminal law on his appointment as a Special Prosecutor against terrorists in Punjab, Delhi and Assam . In 1987, he was designated as a Senior Advocate and in 1990, he was appointed as Additional Solicitor General of India, in which position he represented the State before more than ten Constitution Benches of the Supreme Court of India, in several important cases including the constitutional validity of the Terrorists and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act, cases arising out of the assassination of former Prime Minister Sh. Rajiv Gandhi, the Bombay Blast case, the Calcutta Bomb Blast case as well as important cases against various terrorist organizations such as JKLF, LTTE, PWG etc.

In 1994, Mr. Tulsi was elected as the President of the Criminal Justice Society of India , which position he holds till today. In the same year, he was elected as the President of the Intellectual Property Attorneys Association and later as the Vice-President of the Asian Patent Attorneys Association. Under the leadership of Mr. Tulsi, the Criminal Justice Society of India has organized several important national seminars on subjects such as delays in criminal justice, procedure for search and seizure, matrimonial offences, combating corruption etc.

R.K.P. Shankardass

Mr. R.K.P. Shankardass was born in 1930. Graduated in Economics and Law from Trinity College , Cambridge and was also called to the Bar at Lincoln 's Inn . After spending a few years in Calcutta on a corporate assignment, he started practice from 1961 and worked as junior with the legendary Mr. C.K. Daphtary, former Attorney General for India . Apart from practicing in the Supreme Court and the High Court of Delhi (from the time it came into existence), he also practiced before the first Companies Tribunal during 1964-67. Became a Senior Advocate in 1985. Involved in a number of international and domestic arbitrations both as Counsel and as Arbitrator.

Mr. Shankardass has been very active in promoting Bar Association activities and in particular in the Bar Association of India (‘BAI') with valuable encouragement earlier from its first President, Mr. M.C. Setalvad and later from Mr. C.K. Daphtary. He was its General Secretary for a number of years and is currently the Vice-President as well as the Editor of its Journal “The Indian Advocate”. He was also Editor of the official Election Law Reports for several years and has been a regular contributor of Indian Arbitration Law in the publication, “Dispute Resolution in Asia ”.

He took a number of initiatives to involve members of the Bar from India in international legal activities, at first during the 4th Commonwealth Lawyers Conference hosted by the ‘BAI' in Delhi in January 1971 and later by successfully persuading the International Bar Association to hold its first Biennial Conference of some 1500 lawyers in India in 1982 (of which he was the Conference Chairman) and a second Conference of over 3000 lawyers in 1997. In 1986, he was elected the first President of the International Bar Association, from any Third World country.

From 1990, Mr. Shankardass has been working extensively in the field of international law; he was counsel to the State of Qatar during 1991-2001 in its dispute with Bahrain regarding territorial and maritime issue and appeared on its behalf before the International Court of Justice at The Hague on several occasions. In 1997, he was appointed Commissioner and Panel Chairman at the United Nations Compen-sation Commission in Geneva which dealt, until 2006, with claims for damages suffered during the first Gulf War in 1990-91.

In the last two years, Mr. Shankardass was actively involved as Senior Counsel on behalf of the Government of India in the dispute under the Indus Waters Treaty with Pakistan over the Baglihar project in Jammu & Kashmir which was referred to a Neutral Expert appointed by the World Bank. This case is regarded as having been brought to a very successful conclusion.

He was awarded an honorary OBE in July 1996 for legal services to the British High Commission and was elected a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation in September 1997. He has been a Trustee of a number of Arts and Educational foundations including the Alkazi and Nurul Hasan Foundations and of the Pratichi Trust set up by the Noble Laurete, Amartya Sen.

Raju Ramachandran

Born on 14 th May, 1954, Mr. Ramachandran studied Economics at St. Stephens College , New Delhi and Law at the Faculty of Law, University of Delhi . Joined the Bar in July, 1976. Practiced as an Advocate-on-Record in the Supreme Court and was designated as a Senior Advocate by the Supreme Court in September, 1996 at the age of 42. Elected as Vice-President of the Supreme Court Bar Association for 2001 – 2002. Appointed Additional Solicitor General of India for 2002 - 2004. Argued several important cases in the Supreme Court and various High Courts in various branches of law including Constitutional Law, Administrative Law, Service Law, Admiralty Law, Civil Law and Copyright Law. Was counsel for the Justice Sawant Committee under the Judges Inquiry Act, 1968 which enquired into the charges against Justice V. Ramaswami. Represented the State of Kerala before the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal and also for the Justice R. S. Pathak Inquiry Committee which enquired into matters arising out of the Volcker Report. He has been co-editor and co-author of many noteable books and essays such as ‘Constitutionalism, Human Rights and the Rule of Law-Essays in honour of Soli J Sorabjee', ‘Supreme But Not Infallible' (Essays in Honour of the Supreme Court of India), ‘Supreme Court Practice and Procedure', and author of ‘Changing Profession, Changing Ethics'.

Ram Jethmalani

Mr. Ram Jethmalani, Senior Advocate, Supreme Court of India, an Indian politician and a famous criminal lawyer was born at Shikharpur in Sind (now in Pakistan ) on September 14, 1923. Jethmalani is considered a maverick, and has many distinctions to his credit. He started life very early, and after being given a triple-promotion in school, and after completing his LL.B. at the age of 17, he was too young to join the Bar. But, after persuading the Chief Justice of Sind to pass a special resolution to relax the rules, he entered the profession with a vengeance. He has been a Member of Parliament consecutively since 1987. Ram Jethmalani is a well known face amongst the legal community in India . Even though he has been known as only a criminal lawyer, he has appeared in some of the most high profile cases, and has ought every kind of case. He has taken up unpopular defense cases such as defending the killers of former prime minister Indira Gandhi, people involved in market scams (Harshad Mehta and Ketan Parekh), and a host of gangsters, and smugglers as well as the British girl Daisy Angus who was acquitted of hashish smuggling after 5 years in jail. He is also involved in social work, slum clearance and so on. He is currently teaching at the National Law School , Bangalore , and at the Symbiosis College of Law, Pune. He has taught International Law briefly, at the Wayne State University in Detroit , Michigan ( USA ). He was appointed as the Vice-President, World Peace through Law Center , in 1973 and later became Honorary President, Australia Section. He has been the Chairman, Bar Council of India as well as a Member of the International Bar Association. Currently, he has been in the news for taking up the defence of Manu Sharma, prime accused in the Jessica Lall murder case. He is well-known for his in-depth knowledge of criminal law and his sharp cross-examination skills.

Prashant Bhushan

Mr. Prashant Bhushan did his graduation in Arts and in Law from Allahabad University and Masters in Philosophy of Science from Princeton University , U.S.A. He has been practicing in the Supreme Court since 1983. His area of specialization covers Public Interest Litigation particularly involving Human Rights, Environmental Issues and Accountability of Public Servants. He has appeared in some of the most high profile cases like Narmada Bachao Andolan case, Bofors case, Contempt of Court case against Arundhati Roy, Enron case, Doon Valley Mining case, Right to Information case, Panna Mukta Oilfields case, Oil Companies Disinvestment case, Mauritius Double Taxation case and the recent controversial case by which candidates in elections have been obliged to disclose their assets and criminal antecedents. He is associated with many Organisations and Governing bodies like The Committee of Judicial Accountability, The People's Union for Civil Liberties, The National Campaign for People's Right to Information, The National Alliance of People's Movement, Transparency International ( India ), The Centre for Public Interest Litigation.

There are many articles on legal and political issues to his credit. He is also the author of two books named “The Case That Shook India” (About the case challenging the election of the Prime Minister, Mrs. Indira Gandhi, which led to the declaration of Emergency and the suspension of civil liberties in India in 1975) and ‘‘Bofors: The Selling of a Nation” (About the Bofors Gun deal and its unraveling) .