An ‘accidental lawyer’ who became India’s legal everest
William I, known more as “William the Conqueror” (1028-1087), was the first Norman King of England, and he reigned from 1066 to 1087. He conquered England with the help of Franco-Norman army after the death of Edward who was known as Edward the Confessor. Only British historians may be able to explain the reason behind the epithet confessor attached to Edward’s name. Why these names were brought in is to recount the factors that led to the creation of modern advocates.
Nani A Palkhivala, the legendary lawyer, had mentioned in “Obedience to the Unenforceable” (Selected Writings, Penguin) about the evolution of the legal profession in England. He writes that William the Conqueror introduced the method of trial called “Ordeal by Battle,” where the plaintiff and the defendant in a civil suit or the prosecutor and the accused in criminal proceedings fought each other. Both parties to the litigation were required to be engaged in physical combat. Women and the Church were permitted to appear by their champions, and the champion was the precursor to the modern advocate. It was assumed that in such physical combat, God would help the party that was in the right. The party who was beaten was pronounced to be guilty, and the party who won was declared to be innocent and to have justice on his side. The method of employing an advocate to appear in place of the litigant was extended later from priests and women to other categories of litigants. In the 13th century, the most famous advocate was a gladiator called William Graham. It is an interesting comment on the eternal spirit of private enterprise that a businessman soon employed William Graham on a good salary, and the he let out for a certain fee per fight, Graham’s services to any litigant. Graham was a most successful advocate. When he was engaged by any party, the case usually went uncontested”, Palkhivala writes in the article in his inimitable style.
William Graham was a gladiator who won the disputes through physical power. But the modern-day advocates are gladiators who fight it out against their rivals in courtrooms through intellectual wrestling. Nothing surprising in the best lawyers are described as legends and heroes in legal folklore. Their life stories make interesting reading as they help the readers to know more about the past and present of the times we live in. Nothing surprising in legal luminaries like M C Chagla (who authored Roses in December), B V Acharya ( All From Memory), and M Hidayatullah (My Own Boswell) turned out to be the beacon of the modern-day legal profession.
K K Venugopal, the legendary constitutional expert, about whom much was not known to the outside world, has come out with his memoirs/autobiography “AN ACCIDENTAL LAWYER-My Adventures in Law and Life” (published by Penguin) coauthored with Suhasini Sen. A book which is sure to go places and belongs to the genre of the best books on the world of law written by lawyers.
Venugopal is 95 years young and is a repository of the legal world. But he has restricted details of his professional journey to the minimum and has chosen some of the critical events that turned out to be landmarks in the country’s history. Venugopal reminds the reader of a person born with legal talents as well as with the skill of an editor. His erudition in the courtrooms is as superb as that of an editor. He knows what will be of interest to the average reader and has filled the volume only with the most important information. As a person who has followed news reports about his battles royale in courtrooms, one can tell that the title “Accidental Lawyer” is a mismatch. Venugopal was born with the divine talent to be a lawyer as well as a diplomat, true to his name, which is a synonym for Lord Krishna. Moreover, the cub of a tiger can never be a mouse as it takes to the woods like a fish to water.
Born as the son of M K Nambyar, a cheetah in courtrooms, Venugopal has the pedigree and poise to emerge as a lion in courts. His father, Nambyar, had made his mark as the sub-continent’s lead lawyer through the constitutional cases for which he appeared in the High Courts and Supreme Court. Nambyar’s wisdom and intelligence are reflected in all the cases he argued, and most of them are study materials for law students in India and abroad. Constitutional lectures in law colleges across India commence with the A K Gopalan v State of Madras case, which was argued by Nambyar. It remains a sentinel to the Fundamental Rights engraved in our Constitution. It was a suit filed on behalf of Communist leader A K Gopalan, who was arrested and detained for years under the draconian Preventive Detention Act of 1950. The whole of India is obliged to Nambyar for his intellectual prowess because of which we breath the fresh air of right to life and property.
Venugopal, despite being the son of a legendary lawyer, had to toil hard to reach the zenith of his professional career. Starting as a lawyer in lower courts arguing cases related to motor vehicle laws, Venugopal rose to be the nation’s conscience keeper and emerged as the last word in Constitutional Laws, as well as other myriad issues. The trust the nation has in him could be understood by the fact that he was India’s top legal officer (attorney general and solicitor general) under various governments.
He has recounted two major national incidents that he observed from close quarters. The first was the 1976 dismissal of the DMK government in Tamil Nadu led by M Karunanidhi, using Article 356 of the Constitution and the black days of emergency during which the civil liberties and right to life and property were thrown into dustbins. A report sent by Governor K K Shah to the President on 31st January 1976 morning found fruit by evening on the same day, with the Centre dismissing the Karunanidhi government. How the freedom of speech and expression were annihilated by the Indira Gandhi-led Congress government has been portrayed vividly. Those who lament that there is no freedom of speech and expression under the Narendra Modi government are advised to learn what happened during the 18 months commencing 25th June 1975, and that culminated in the rout of the Congress in the 1977 General Election.
Venugopal does not belong to the “all work and no play” category of lawyers. He has his pastime as an avid traveler and horse rider. The travels he undertook across the globe in the company of his wife, Santha, always kept him refreshed and rejuvenated to take up more and more challenges. His love and passion for Santha could be understood from his emotion-packed words, and he has kept the same to a minimum. Life was kind to him, barring the loss of his better half. Reading, wanderlust, and physical activities like trekking and riding keep Venugopal as fit as a fiddle. He is 95 years young, and I am sure all who have heard about him would love to see him cross the century mark and launch a new innings in search of another century.
K K Venugopal himself is a university of law and the Mount Everest in the profession of law. The book An Accidental Lawyer is a must-read for all aspiring lawyers. Once you read the book in full, you will be convinced that Venugopal is not an accidental lawyer but a person who was born to become a legal wizard.
AN ACCIDENTAL LAWYER- My Adventures in Law and Life
by KK Venugopal and Suhasini Sen (Penguin)
Rs 799/-
Note:
1. Text in Blue points to additional data on the topic.
2. The views expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of PGurus.
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