India’s legal sector, led by diverse and prominent players, has grown by leaps and bounds in complexity, substance and global reputation in recent years. The country’s leading litigation lawyers have put the judiciary in center stage of constitutional politics, addressing grave and great issues of historical importance. Meanwhile, India’s transactional lawyers, both in-house corporate counsel for multinational companies and outside counsel dispersed throughout the country’s leading law firms, have raised the global profile of India’s legal arena to unprecedented heights. Of course, we cannot ignore India’s public interest lawyers, both prominent and not-so-prominent, who fight passionately for a multitude of causes to address imbalances of power or justice in areas as diverse as, among other things, poverty, environment, and public corruption. Lastly, India continues to be well-served by legendary Government functionaries, the conscience-keepers who uphold the values of the Constitution at crucial junctures, and prominent members of academia, who not only transform future lawyers into social engineers, but also shed light on important issues through scholarship and research.
Lex Witness takes immense pride in presenting before you “Hall of fame: Top 50”, the individuals who have helped shape the legal landscape of modern India.
Fali Sam Nariman is one of the living legends in the field of law and India’s most istinguished Constitutional lawyer
Fali completed B.A. in Economics & History from St. Xavier’s College (Bombay) in 1948 and LLB Degree from Government Law College (Bombay) in 1950. He earned the first position in the Advocate’s Examination and was awarded the ‘Kinlock Forbes Gold Medal and Prize for Roman Law & Jurisprudence’. Nariman was enrolled as an Advocate in the High Court of Bombay in 1950 and has been enrolled as a Senior Advocate in the Supreme Court of India since 1971. He was appointed as the Additional Solicitor General for India from 1972- 1975. Nariman’s expertise ranges from Constitutional Law, International Law to Human Rights and International Arbitration.
Nariman has held numerous positions of leadership in the legal community, both within India and internationally. Amongst his various contributions, protecting the independence of the court and the integrity of the judicial process have been notable. He was the lead lawyer in the ‘Second Judges case’ where the judiciary took over the right to appoint judges, securing the power of judicial review over legislations specifically exempted from judicial review by Parliament. He also championed the cause of the subordinate judiciary for better pay and terms of service in the All India Judges Association case. In 2007, he was awarded Padma Vibhushan in recognition of ‘Exceptional and Distinguished Service in the Field of Public Affairs.’ He has been also awarded the Gruber Prize for Justice, an international prize awarded by the Gruber Foundation of USA, in 2002.
Soli Jehangir Sorabjee is a distinguished jurist and human-rights advocate and a well-known champion of freedom of speech and expression
Soli completed his legal education at Government Law College (Bombay) and was admitted to the Bar in 1953. At the Law College, he was awarded ‘Kinlock Forbes Gold Medal and Prize for Roman Law & Jurisprudence’. In 1971, Sorabjee was designated as the Senior Advocate in the Supreme Court. He served as the Solicitor- General for India from 1977 to 1980, as the Additional Solicitor General for India from 1989 to 1990, and as the Attorney-General for India from 1998 to 2004.
A doyen of freedom of speech and expression, Sorabjee has defended freedom of press in many landmark cases in the Supreme Court and has been instrumental in revoking censorship orders and bans on publications. As the Attorney General, he successfully defended India against Pakistan’s allegation in the Atlantique downing case in the International Court of Justice (ICJ). The Indian Air Force had shot down a Pakistan Navy plane citing violation of airspace. The incident took place in the Rann of Kutch in 1999, just a month after the Kargil war, creating a tense atmosphere between the two nations. Sorabjee was able to secure India’s exoneration, thereby avoiding a grave political situation. In 1997, he was appointed as a Special Rapporteur for Nigeria. Sorabjee was awarded the Padma Vibhushan in 2002 for his defense of the freedom of expression and the protection of human rights.
Ashok Desai is a legal luminary, a distinguished law officer of the Government of India, and a champion of rule of law
Ashok Desai studied law at the Law College (Bombay) and graduated with a Law Degree in 1952. In 1956, he graduated from the London School of Economics with a Bachelor Degree in Economics. In the same year, he was invited to the Bar at Lincoln’s Inn, London.
Desai’s list of accomplishments is unique. He presented India’s Report to the United Nations Committee on Human Rights in Geneva in 1997 and led the Indian delegation to the United Nations Preparatory Committee on Money Laundering Bill in Vienna in 1998. He has been a Consultant to the Commonwealth Workshop on Administrative Law at Lusaka, Zambia in 1990 and was the Chairman of the Committee on Administrative Law of International Bar Association from 1986-88. As a Senior Advocate and as the Attorney General for India, he appeared in a large number of cases involving issues of Administrative Law and Constitutional Law. Amongst the notable ones, he appeared in the Supreme Court in Ramanna Shetty case on the obligation of the State to act fairly; Narasimha Rao case on “Parliamentary privilege”; Vineet Narain case on powers of a Court to monitor investigation against political leaders. In 2001, he was awarded with the Padma Bhushan and the Law Luminary Award.
K.K. Venugopal is a renowned Constitutional Lawyer
K.K. Venugopal is the son of the illustrious M.K. Nambiar, who famously defended the right to life and personal liberty in AK Gopalan v. State of Madras. Venugopal was enrolled as an Advocate in January 1954 and in 1972 he was designated as a Senior Advocate by the Supreme Court. He was the Additional Solicitor General of India during 1979-80.
Venugopal has had a long and illustrious career in law. He has appeared for several important and historical cases like Pondicherry Assembly speaker election case, Karunanidhi Ministry’s dismissal during emergency period case, Babri Masjid case etc. But the case relating to the VP Singh Government’s decision in 1990 to implement the Mandal Commission’s reservation recommendations is considered a defining moment in his career. In that matter, he was instrumental in obtaining a stay from the Supreme Court which helped stop the spiralling student violence in the country. In 1995, he was appointed as the President of SAARC LAW (International Association of Lawyers of SAARC Countries) and in 1996 as the President of Union Internationale des Avocats (Paris). In 1997, he received the “Grand Cross” award from the Bar Association of Bagota (Columbia) in recognition of his achievement in human rights and legal multi-lingualism and multi-culturalism. Venugopal was conferred with Padma Bhushan in 2002.
Ram Jethmalani is one of the most successful yet controversial criminal lawyers in the country today
Ram Jethmalani completed his LLB from Sahani Law College, Karachi at the age of 17. Although too young to join the Bar, he persuaded the Chief Justice of Sind to pass a special resolution to relax the rules and entered the profession at the age of 18. After the Partition, he moved to Bombay and commenced his practice. Jethmalani became a Member of Parliament in 1977. He has also served as the Union Minister of Law, Justice and Company Affairs.
Jethmalani has fought numerous high-profile and controversial cases over the years. In the notable Hawala scam case, he argued for the BJP leader LK Advani, challenging the charge sheet and the proceedings initiated on its basis. The judge made a pre-emptive observation about politicians being corrupt. Jethmalani’s famous response “My Lord is absolutely right. These politicians deserve no mercy. But the law is different. Consider this: if My Lord dismisses my case and I go back home and write My Lord’s initials on my diary with a sum of Rs 10 lakh written against it, would My Lord be chargesheeted for it?”, ultimately led to the quashing of the case against Advani. Jethmalani was awarded the International Jurist Award by the Prime Minister of India.
Shanti Bhushan has had an illustrious sixty-year career culminating in the campaign for judicial accountability
Shanti Bhushan joined the Bar at Allahabad High Court in 1948. He served as the Advocate General of Uttar Pradesh from 1969-1970. His involvement in party politics began in 1972 as a member of the Congress Party. From 1977 – 1979 he served as the Union Minister of Law and Justice in the Janata Party Government. Although he joined the BJP in 1980, he resigned in 1986 after the BJP acted against his advice over an election petition. Currently, Bhushan is involved in accountability of the Indian Judiciary and has set-up ‘Campaign for Judicial Accountability and Judicial Reform’.
Shanti Bhushan has been part of some of the most interesting and seminal cases that laid the foundations of India’s constitutional history. They include the Keshav Singh case which led to the first stand-off between the executive and the judiciary; Indira Gandhi election case which unseated her as Prime Minister, leading to the imposition of the Emergency; Habeas corpus case where the Supreme Court declared that during an emergency, there is no right to life or liberty and hence no recourse against illegal detention; and the Parliament attack case in which the Supreme Court, while acquitting the accused person of all charges of conspiracy, convicted him on a charge for which he was never accused. More recently, his movement for judicial reforms has been responsible for campaigns against the judicial misconduct of judges and for the declaration of assets by the judges. Bhushan was featured at 74th position in Indian Express list of ‘Most Powerful Indians in 2009’.
Recognised for his passion for judicial activism, Bhushan continues to actively push his ‘Campaign for Judicial Accountability and Judicial Reforms’.
Parasaran is considered the grand old man of India’s court royalty
Parasaran completed his graduation in 1949 from Presidency College (Madras). He completed his LLB in 1949 from Law College (Madras) and was awarded Justice Shri V. Bhashyam Iyengar Gold Medal in Hindu Law. He was also the recipient of Justice Shri K.S. Krishnaswami Iyengar Medal in the Bar Council Examination. Parasaran was enrolled as an Advocate in the Supreme Court in 1958. He was appointed as the Solicitor General for India from 1980 to 1983 and the Attorney General for India from 1983-89.
Parasaran has fielded the widest range of cases among India’s legal luminaries, ranging from complicated Constitutional issues to politically volatile water disputes between states. Amongst his several important assignments, he has been the 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. Parasaran has been nominated as a Member of the National Commission for Review of the Working of the Constitution. In the year 2003, he was awarded the Padma Bhushan.
Goolam Essaji Vahanvati is an eminent lawyer with a successful career spanning close to four decades.
Goolam Vahanvati graduated in Arts and Humanities from St. Xavier’s College (Mumbai), where he was selected as the Tata scholar and went on to complete LLB from Government Law College (Mumbai). He started his practice in early 1970s in Bombay High Court, handling a variety of matters involving important Constitutional questions. He served the Maharashtra Government as its Advocate General from 1999 to 2004. He was appointed as the Solicitor General for India in 2004, a post which he occupied till May 2009. Vahanvati was appointed in June 2009 as the Attorney-General for a period of three years.
Among the various key legal matters handled by him, Vahanvati has successfully defended the Union Government against public interest litigation challenging the Government’s flagship legislation reserving 33 percent seats for various backward category students in centrally-run educational institutions of higher learning. He has also advocated the Government’s stand before a Constitutional Bench of the Apex court, which examined the legality of various Governments’ growing tendency to put laws enacted by them in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution to ensure that the matter is not subjected to judicial scrutiny. Notably, Vahanvati has also successfully defended the Government in the matter regarding closure of commercial establishments in Delhi’s residential areas.
Gopal Subramaniam is one of the most industrious law officers of the Government of India with a nearly 30-year illustrious career behind him
Gopal Subramaniam did his BA in English Literature in 1977 and LLB in 1980 from the University of Delhi. Beginning his career in 1980-81, Subramaniam was appointed Standing Counsel for the Union of India in the Supreme Court in 1983 and a decade later, i.e. in 1993, he was nominated suo motu and designated by the Supreme Court as Senior Advocate. He was appointed as the Additional Solicitor General for India in 2005 and held the post till May 2009. He was appointed Solicitor-General for India in June 2009. Subramaniam is also the current Chairman of Bar Council of India and Adviser to the National Human Rights Commission.
Subramaniam has represented the Centre in several high-voltage cases like Bihar Assembly dissolution; defreezing of London bank accounts of Bofors case accused Ottavio Quattrocchi; and the cash-for-query scam. Apart from handling politically sensitive cases, he also helped the Supreme Court frame the Anti-ragging Code. Acting as amicus curiae in the case, he, alongwith the Raghavan Committee, suggested radical measures like expulsion of students found guilty of ragging and denial of any further admission. More importantly, Subramanium also appeared in the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court as the Special Public Prosecutor in the Parliament attack case in which the trial court’s verdict of awarding death sentence to Mohd Afzal was upheld.
As the newly-elected Chairman of Bar Council of India, Subramaniam has identified his top three priorities, as firstly, working towards evolving techniques by which the self-esteem of the legal community is raised; secondly, ensuring that all the members of the legal fraternity stay connected with each other; and thirdly, upgrading the skills of the lawyers’ to enable them to become efficient, competent and transparent.
Harish Salve is a well-known lawyer and has been ranked amongst the most powerful persons in the country today
Harish Salve practiced as a Partner in a firm of chartered accountants, on the taxation side, before joining the Bar. He started his legal career by joining the Chambers of the former Attorney General of India, Soli J Sorabjee. Salve set up his independent practice in 1986 and was designated as a Senior Advocate by the Supreme Court in 1992. He served as the Solicitor General for India from 1999 to 2002. His expertise spans from Constitutional Law, Commercial Law to Taxation Law.
The most “telling event” in Salve’s career has been to argue before a five-judge Constitution Bench in the important Bearer Bonds case in 1981. In the said landmark judgment, the court held that, on economic regulation courts must give considerable leeway to the legislature and that it is a fundamental rule that the duty of judges is to expound and not legislate. He was appointed as amicus curiae by the Supreme Court in the several notable cases, including Forest Conservation case and the Delhi Vehicular Pollution case. Notably, he is the Chairman of the Committee of the Union Ministry of Power, constituted to recommend guidelines for the hydro-electric power projects in India.
Salve continues to practice, arguing before India’s highest courts. Recently, Salve represented Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries Limited in the high profile gas dispute case against Anil Ambani’s Reliance Natural Resources Limited.
Abhishek Manu Singhvi is an eminent jurist, Parliamentarian, visible media personality, well known columnist, author and commentator
Abhishek Singhvi completed BA in Economics from St. Stephen’s College (University of Delhi) and went on to earn MA and PhD from Trinity College (University of Cambridge) in UK. He completed his PhD under the legendary Sir WilliamWade of Cambridge University. He served as Additional Solicitor General of India in 1997- 1998. Currently, Singhvi is a Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha and National Spokesperson for the Congress Party. He also serves as the Chairman of Indo-US Forum of Parliamentarians.
Singhvi has the unique distinction of being the youngest Senior Advocate and Additional Solicitor General of India. He has appeared in several leading and landmark decisions of the Supreme Court on Constitutional Law, Commercial Law and several other areas of Civil Law, including the D.K. Basu decision on custodial death; Naveen Jindal Right to Fly the Flag case; Commercial Free Speech case of Tata Yellow Pages; NTC Bombay Mills case on urban environmental issues; Mandal case on backward classes reservation; Renusagar 1 and 2 cases on international commercial arbitration; Badal case on Prevention of Corruption Act; Delhi and Mumbai Airports privatization case and several others. Singhvi sits on several important Parliamentary Committees, including Privileges, Law & Justice, Urban Affairs and Office of Profit. Notably, he has been lead speaker from the Treasury Benches in Parliament on several major debates like the Indo-US Nuclear Agreement, Office of Profit, Internal Security, Judicial Activism. Singhvi was conferred the ‘Global Leader of Tomorrow’ Award byWorld Economic Forum (Davos) in 1999.
Arun Jaitley successfully juggles twin roles of a leading lawyer and a prominent politician
Arun Jaitley graduated in Commerce from Shri Ram College of Commerce (University of Delhi) in 1973. He completed his LLB degree in 1977 from the Faculty of Law (University of Delhi). He has been practising law before the Supreme Court and several High Courts in the country since 1977. He
was designated Senior Advocate in 1990. Jaitley was the Additional Solicitor General of India in the year 1990. His political foray began in October 1999 when he was appointed as Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Information and Broadcasting. He was later elevated to Cabinet Rank in 2000 when he was given the charge of Ministry of Law, Justice & Company Affairs. Currently, Jaitley is the leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha.
Jaitley was a delegate on behalf of the Government of India to the United Nations General Assembly Session in June 1998 where the Declaration on Laws Relating to Drugs and Money Laundering was approved. Amongst the various high-profile cases, Jaitley has represented the Birla family in their legal battle against R.S. Lodha on the question of ownership of Birla Corporation Limited. Jaitley is also credited with successfully introducing the eighty-fourth amendment to the Constitution of India in the year 2002 freezing Parliamentary seats until 2026; and the ninety-first amendment to the Constitution of India in the year 2004 penalising political defections.
KTS Tulsi has set new standards of public service amongst lawyers
K.T.S. Tulsi graduated in Political Science from the Punjab University and completed his Bachelors in Law in 1971. In the same year, he was enrolled as a member of the Bar of Punjab & Haryana High Court. His initial years of practice were complimented by assignment as a part-time lecturer in Law from 1973-76. In 1980, he was appointed as a Special Prosecutor against terrorists in Punjab, Delhi and Assam, in which capacity he prosecuted terrorists in cases such as ‘Operation Black Thunder’. In 1987, he was designated as a Senior Advocate. Tulsi was appointed as Additional Solicitor General of India in 1990. In 1994, he was elected as the President of the Criminal Justice Society of India,the position which he holds till date.
In the capacity of Additional Solicitor General, Tulsi represented the State before more than ten Constitution Benches of the Supreme Court and 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 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. But perhaps the defining moment in the career of Tulsi, was the successful prosecution of the case on behalf of the victims of the infamous Uphaar Tragedy. The said judgment is considered a landmark in the field of public interest litigation.
Shardul S Shroff is a leading corporate lawyer who has contributed in advancement of India’s corporate law practice to international standards
Shardul Shroff attended Sydenham College (Mumbai) and the Government Law College (Mumbai University), where he received his LLB Degree. He was admitted to the Bar in1980 and as an dvocate-on-Record of the Supreme Court in 1985. He joined Amarchand & Mangaldas in 1980, a firm founded in 1917 and was named as a Partner of the same in 1984-85. Today, he is the Managing Partner of Amarchand & Mangaldas & Suresh A Shroff & Co., one of India’s top law firms. As a corporate attorney for 30 years, Shroff has extensive experience in both public and private mergers and acquisitions with significant exposure in strategic alliances and takeovers.
Shardul has advised on matters such as restructuring of Hero Group entities; Apollo Tyres’ acquisition of the South African unit of Dunlop Tyres; Kuwait Petroleum’s bid for acquisition of HPCL; and Crompton Greav es on its takeover of Pauwel’s global power transmission businesses, amongst others. Recently, he assisted the Governmentnominated Board of the fraud-hit Satyam Computers with regard to its turnaround strategy and advised on matters pertaining to restructuring, bidding procedure, takeover offerings, capital markets, regulatory hearings etc. Shroff has the distinction of participating in the formulation and drafting of several important economic legislations and company law reforms in India. Currently, he is also the Chairman of CII National Committee on Legal Services for 2010-11. Shroff was awarded the National Law Day Award by the President in 2009.
Shardul Shroff is constantly gestating new divisions for rendering the firm with capacity of a full-service law firm.
Lalit Bhasin is a distinguished senior lawyer who is well respected for his leadership abilities in the legal community
Lalit Bhasin holds a B.A. (Hons), LLB and commenced his law practice in 1962. He established Bhasin & Co. in the year 1970, which is now one of the largest law firms in North India. His areas of specialization range from employment & labour laws, corporate laws to constitutional law, banking & finance to aviation. Bhasin served as the Chairman, Bar Council of Delhi from 1973 to 1977. Currently, he is the President of Society of Indian Law Firms (SILF), the apex body of law firms in India; Chairman, PHD Chamber of Commerce & Industry Committee on Corporate Affairs; and Honorary Life Member of International Bar Association, amongst several others.
Lalit Bhasin is well known in the Indian business community for his litigation skills. In addition to his law practice, Bhasin has held and continues to hold important positions in various fieldsprofessional, commercial, educational, and social. He has been on the Board of Directors of several leading companies across different industries, including Reliance Petroleum, Godfrey Phillips India, Bell Ceramics, American Express India and India Gypsum. Bhasin was nominated onthe Advisory Committee of the Central Government for advising on matters arising out of the administration of the Companies Act. He is also a prolific writer and has authored books on wideranging subjects. Bhasin was awarded the Plaque of Honor by the Prime Minister in 2002 for outstanding contribution to the “Rule of Law”. In 2007, the President presented him the National Law Day Award for “Outstanding Contribution to the Development of the Legal Profession in India”.
Jyoti Sagar is a prominent lawyer and the guiding force behind one of India’s top law firms
Jyoti Sagar attended St. Stephens College (University of Delhi) where he completed BA in Economics in the year 1972. In the year, he started his career as an Associate in Remfrey and Sagar, a Delhi based law firm, practicing corporate and intellectual property laws. He founded the firm J. Sagar Associates (JSA) in the year 1991, which is considered to be one of the leading law firms in the country today. In addition to his practice in JSA, Jyoti is also a Senior Partner of K&S Partners, a boutique practice in Intellectual Property Laws. His experience spans a wide range of practice areas including corporate and commercial laws, mergers & acquisitions, banking, finance and infrastructure projects.
Jyoti’s vision to establish an equitable partnership within JSA has ensured the firm has longevity in the Indian legal market. As the guiding force behind JSA, Jyoti has been providing both hands-on legal advice on significant assignments as well as overall strategic inputs. He has worked extensively on several policy issues including serving on various committees of the Government of India and Chambers of Commerce. Amongst the various posts held by him, he is the President of Asian Patent Attorneys Association (Indian Group).
Som Mandal is a renowned lawyer whose work has an international dimension
Som Mandal completed his legal education from the University of Calcutta. He was enrolled as an Advocate in 1988 and started his practice in Calcutta by joining FoxMandal, the first Indo-British law partnership dating back to 1896. He later moved to New Delhi in 1989. In 2006, he brokered the merger of two of India’s oldest law firms, FoxMandal and Little & Co., to create FoxMandal Little, making it India’s largest law firm. His core practice areas include mergers & acquisitions, corporate law and project finance.
Mandal has been rated as a Leading Individual Lawyer for Corporate and M&A by various international publications. The International Who’s Who of Business Lawyers has accredited him for the M&A sector in India. He is the one of the Indian representatives at the Commission on Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC); Chair of the Asia Pacific Forum; and Council Member of section on legal practice of the International Bar Association and of Committee on Corporate Law & Legal Affairs-FICCI.
Som Mandal is looking at entering into some of the areas of practices which others in India may not have given much thought to, such as Environment Law. He also plans to expand some of the existing areas of practice such as infrastructure, finance, capital markets.
Ranji Dua is a lawyer who understands what international investors want and is able to balance risk within a complicated legal system
Dua graduated from St. Stephen’s College (University of Delhi) in Economics. He obtained LLB Degree from the University of Delhi after obtaining a Masters in Economics from the Delhi School of Economics. He commenced his career as an individual practitioner in the mid- 70s’ which has since transformed into a national practice with his firm, Dua Associates, having a nationwide presence. Dua has a vast breadth of experience in the fields of corporate law, mergers & acquisitions, project finance, public issues, foreign investment, corporate structuring/restructuring, infrastructure, international trade and commercial aspects of doing business in India.
Ranji Dua was one of the first to set up separate practice groups in his firm for banking, insurance and privatization. In order to accommodate non-lawyers, he formed a separate arm, Dua Consulting which works on public affairs, financialplanning and regulatory approvals. Dua has been actively involved in the process of regulatory reforms in India consistent with India’s multilateral trade policy commitments. He has advised clients ranging from Fortune 500 Companies to closely-held and privately owned Indian and foreign companies, public sector undertakings and listed companies in India. Several international publications feature him as a leading individual in the area of corporate governance. Dua also sits on the Boards of listed Indian companies and Indian subsidiaries of multinational clients.
Dua has recently established an office in Singapore and is aiming that it will prove to be a centre of excellence in Indian law by making experienced professionals in Indian law available to clients in the city and region.
Shardul Thacker is a well-known face in India’s admiralty and corporate finance practice
Shardul Thacker was enrolled as a Solicitor in Mumbai in 1973. In the same year, he commenced his practice as a commercial litigation lawyer with emphasis in matters relating to merchandise commodities and finance. He became a Partner in the firm of Mulla & Mulla & Craigie Blunt & Caroe in the year 1977. From 1990 onwards, he expanded his practice into corporate areas, including structured finance. Thacker also qualified as a Solicitor in England &Wales in 1981 and in Hong Kong in 1982. Thacker represents all the major banks in transactions involving Project Finance, Asset Finance and Structured Finance. He also possesses extensive admiralty and corporate finance experience.
Amongst his notable banking transactions, Thacker acted for a banking consortium in all lending transactions for acquisition of all LNG Tankers chartered by Petronet LNG India. He also represented Indian financial institutions which were defrauded in the security scam transactions, tried before the Special Court against Harshad Mehta and other notified parties. Thacker has been involved in over 60 ship financing transactions and has handled over 700 ship arrest matters. One of his most significant ship financing transactions involved advising lenders in a Rupee and US Dollar facility from Axis Bank India (USD 70 million) and Netixis Singapore (USD 50 million) which was used by Great Offshore to finance the acquisition of a rig. In addition to his successful legal practice, Thacker has been on the Advisory Board of Mitsui Bank, Fuji Bank, Mizuho Corporate Bank.
Zia Mody is a top corporate attorney and one of India’s most powerful businesswomen
Zia Mody studied law at Selwyn College, Cambridge University (UK) followed by an LLM from Harvard University. Thereafter, she worked with Baker & McKenzie, an international law firm, in New York City from 1979 to 1983 and was admitted as a member of the New York State Bar. She started her own practice in Mumbai in 1984, which she merged with two other firms to form AZB & Partners, India’s second-largest law firm, where she is presently a Senior Partner. Her primary practice areas are M&A, private equity, securities laws, commercial arbitration, and BPO related work and litigation.
Mody has led her firm in some of the most significant and high-profile cross-border transactions in recent past. Her team of lawyers advised on the two largest cross border deals in India’s history, viz., Tata Steel’s USD 12 billion purchase of Anglo-Dutch Corus Group Plc; and Aditya Birla group-owned Hindalco Industries Ltd takeover of Atlantabased aluminum firm Novelis Inc. for USD 6.4 billion. Mody handles several overseas transactions for Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), specifically on global acquisitions and opportunities. She was selected as one of the 25 most powerful women in Indian business by Business Today in September 2004 and as one of India’s 100 most powerful CEOs by the Economic Times in 2004 and 2006.
Mody foresees a bigger AZB with a more robust model and more talented people coming in to help the firm to look forward.
Nishith Desai is an international corporate and tax lawyer, who has been instrumental in formulating India’s tax policy reforms
Nishith Desai completed his LLB in 1973 and LLM in 1977 from University of Mumbai. He has been researching in the area of international tax since 1977. In 1989, he founded Nishith Desai Associates, a multi-skilled and research-based law firm. Desai is the only Indian to hold a special license from the State Bar of California to practice Indian law. His practice encompasses an extensive range of tax, corporate and technology matters, with a strong emphasis on private equity and venture capital funds.
Nishith Desai has substantial experience in the Fund sector, having advised the largest number of offshore investment funds. He played a seminal role in structuring several private equity funds, including the Indocean Funds, HSBC Private Equity India Fund,Westbridge Capital, DSP Merrill Lynch, in addition to structuring several domestic venture capital funds. He has also advised the Small Industries Development Board of India and the Government of India on their INR 1 billion domestic venture capital fund. Desai has been at the forefront of India’s public policy reforms. Among his numerous initiatives, he convened the ‘eComTaxpert’ group, comprising global experts in the field of information technology and international taxation, to provide recommendations to the Government of India on the taxation of e-commerce in India. Desai also assisted the Government of Mauritius in the development of an offshore regime. In 2004, Desai was ranked as No. 28 in a global Top 50 “Gold List” by Tax Business, after a worldwide survey of tax professionals who had influenced tax policies.
Pravin Anand is ‘the’ leading intellectual property lawyer in India
Pravin Anand graduated in Science from St. Stephens College, University of Delhi in 1976. He studied Law at the Faculty of Law (University of Delhi) completing LLB in 1979. He has since been practising in Delhi both as an advocate, and as a patent and trademark attorney. Currently, Anand is the Managing Partner of Anand and Anand Advocates, a leading specialised intellectual property law firm. His primary practice areas include trademark, copyright, design and patent litigation and prosecution, IT and Tele-Communication laws.
Pravin Anand has done three decades of pioneering work in intellectual property law. He has been a counsel in some of the most high-profile and interesting intellectual property cases in India such as, the first Anton-Pillar Order in the HMV cases; the first Mareva Injunction Order in the Philips case; the first Norwich Pharmacal Order in the Hollywood cigarettes case. He also appeared in the Glenfiddich case which dealt with the concept of dilution in trade mark law; TimeWarner case where an Indian court recognised market survey evidence; and the Yahoo case, the first domain name case, amongst others. Anand holds key positions in several international and national expert committees, including Chairman of IPR Promotion Advisory Committee (IPAC) set up by the Government of India; and Chairman of the IT Committee set up by FICCI.
Pravin remains focused on Intellectual Property, while reaching out to smaller cities where creativity thrives.
Rohit Kochhar is an entrepreneurial lawyer, the first practicing lawyer to be recognized as a ‘young entrepreneur’
Rohit Kochhar holds a Degree in Commerce from the University of Delhi after which he obtained a Bachelors Degree in Law from the National Law College (University of Mumbai) in the year 1986, where he was a merit scholar. He started practicing in the year 1987. In 1994, he established Kochhar & Co., which is counted amongst the premier Indian law firms. Kochhar is experienced in regulatory approvals, joint ventures, foreign collaborations, acquisitions, company law, exchange control, general commercial transactions and corporate litigation.
Kochhar regularly advises numerous Fortune 500 Companies (including major US and Japanese corporations) on a host of Indian law issues. He was the Chairman of the Cross Border Investment Committee of the Inter-Pacific Bar Association from 1997 to 1998. Currently, Kochhar holds the position of Honorary Secretary of the Society of Indian Law Firms (SILF). Under the umbrella of the Kochhar Group, Rohit has also founded ‘Kochhar LexServe’, the first legal process outsourcing (LPO) business set up by an Indian law firm. He was awarded the International Council of Jurists Award by the then Prime Minister of India, for his ‘distinctive accomplishment in the areas of corporate law and legal entrepreneurship’ in 2008. More recently, he has been conferred the distinguished Rashtriya Gaurav Award for his outstanding achievements in the legal field in 2010.
Rohit Kochhar would like to experiment with many new businesses and service companies
Rajiv K. Luthra is one of India’s earliest pioneers in international transaction law
Rajiv K. Luthra attended University of Delhi, Harvard Law School, and George Washington University. At Harvard Law School he specialized in corporate structuring and negotiations. He worked in an accountancy firm for over 15 years and started practicing law in 1989. In the year 1990, he founded Luthra & Luthra Law Offices, now a premier full-service firm in India.
Rajiv Luthra shot into prominence by doing substantial work in Project Finance at a time when it was a relatively new area for Indian lawyers. Since then he has advised on 40 power projects. He has successfully handled various disinvestment, privatization and restructuring assignments and has worked on some of the largest mergers in Indian corporate history. He is also well-known for advising various foreign firms on entry strategies to penetrate the Indian market. Luthra serves on several top Committees, including Advisory Board to Competition Commission of India, National Committee on Energy, and Core Group on Infrastructure Development of the CII. He has been nominated as one of the world’s leading lawyers by Chambers Global, Asia Legal Business, Asialaw and Asia Legal Pacific for his expertise in various practice areas.
Luthra is focusing on expanding the firm’s strength to nearly 300 lawyers across the country within the next 12-15 months.
Bharat Vasani heads the legal team of India’s largest conglomerate, one of the most challenging legal roles in the country today
Bharat Vasani holds Bachelor Degrees in Commerce and Law. He is also a Member of the Institute of Company Secretaries of India. With over 28 years of experience as a corporate lawyer in the senior management level, Vasani has worked with some of the leading companies such as, Phillips India Ltd., NOCIL and Dow Chemical International Ltd (USA). He joined Tata Sons in December 2000 and is currently the General Counsel for the Tata Group. His areas of specialization include corporate and commercial law, economic legislation ns, M&A, joint ventures, foreign collaborations,WTO-related legislation and insider trading regulations.
One of Vasani’s most notable achievements has been the successful completion of the highly complex demerger of Tata Consultancy Service (TCS) Division from Tata Sons Ltd., which had global ramifications in 57 different countries in addition to being one of the most successful IPO of the decade. He has been awarded the ‘International Financial Law Review (IFLR) Asia Awards- India 2010’ for outstanding achievement which has not seen in other editions of the award.
On top of Vasani’s scheme of things is to make the legal department of the Tata Group a role model for India’s corporate sector.
Mysore Prasanna created Aditya Birla Group’s Corporate Legal Function from the scratch
Prasanna completed his BSc, LLB and LLM from the University of Mysore between 1966 and 1972. He commenced his career as a litigator in 1970 before switching to the corporate sector in 1979. He worked for over twenty seven years with different organizations like including General Insurance Corporation of India, Brooke Bond India Limited and Larsen & Toubro Limited. Prasanna joined the Aditya Birla Group in 1998 as the General Counsel responsible for the legal function of the Group. He retired from this position in April 2010. Prasanna has also served as the Co- Chairperson of the Legal Affairs Committee of ASSOCHAM; Advisor to the Managing Committee of Bombay Chamber; and a member of the Corporate Laws Committee of FICCI. His areas of expertise include corporate restructuring and cross-border M&A.
Prasanna was instrumental in establishing the corporate legal cell for the Aditya Birla Group. Among his numerous achievements, the most notable ones have been the demerger of the cement business of Larsen & Toubro Limited into a subsidiary of Grasim Industries, an Aditya Birla Group entity; and taking Aditya Birla Minerals public on the Australian Stock Exchange. Prasanna was awarded the Outstanding Leader award by the Chairman of the Aditya Birla Group. He was adjudged the ‘Best In-house Counsel’ by Asia Law in 2005 and 2007. In the year 2006, he was awarded the National Law Day Award by the Prime Minister of India.
Vijaya Sampath is a top-level executive in one of Asia’s leading providers of telecommunications services
Sampath received her LLB Degree from Karnataka University in 1975. She has attended the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School and the Strategic Alliances Program at Wharton (USA). She has been in the legal profession for over twenty-five years as in-house legal counsel for large Indian groups including Indian Aluminium Company Ltd., where she served as the Vice-President (Legal) from 1995-2000. She was a Senior Partner in J. Sagar Associates, a leading national law firm, from 2000-2003. Since 2004, Vijaya is the Group General Counsel and Company Secretary of Bharti Enterprises, a conglomerate comprising India’s leading private telecommunications service provider. Her field of specialization includes M&A (within and outside India), large commercial and outsourcing transactions, governance and ethics, compliance etc.
As the General Counsel for the Bharti Group, Sampath has been successfully overseeing a team of over seventy-five lawyers in various group companies besides being directly responsible for group M&As, joint ventures & strategic alliances, investment by financial investors in ventures, international commercial arrangements, providing highend litigation strategy as well as providing legal advice and counsel to the Group. In a recent noteworthy move, in March 2010, Sampath led her team at Bharti Airtel to enter into a landmark legally binding agreement with Zain Group to acquire Zain Africa BV for USD 10.7 billion, thereby extending its operations across 18 countries. She has served on expert panels in national and international forums on various aspects of law and practice. Sampath featured in Business India’s 2005 listing of India’s highest paid executives.
Venkatarao Ponnada is responsible for legal and strategic planning in one of India’s top three private sector business houses
Ponnada obtained his LLB from Andhra University in 1978 and LLM in Corporate Laws from University of Delhi in 1989. He worked with Industrial Finance Corporation of India (IFCI) as Assistant Manager (Legal) from 1985 to 1991. For most of the 1990s, Ponnada held senior management positions in the Legal Department of Industrial Development Bank of India (IDBI). During his first spell at Reliance Industries Limited, from April 2000 to May 2001, he was the in-charge of the legal aspects of project financing activities. He then joined as a Partner at India Law Services, a leading law firm in Mumbai with a focus on corporate law, before joining Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani (ADA) Group in 2004 as the Group General Counsel. Ponnada has over 31 years of experience in corporate laws, transaction documentation, project documentation, capital market related legal matters and project financing.
Ponnada is the overall in-charge of and is responsible for the legal work of the Group’s businesses. Some of the significant assignments which he has recently handled include (a) litigation associated with the demerger of gas based energy undertaking to Reliance Natural Resources Ltd. from Reliance Industries Ltd. which involved complicated corporate law and sovereign authority related issues besides critical commercial questions; (b) acquisition of interest in Indonesian coal mines; (c) financial closure of Sasan Ultra Mega Power Plant and Mumbai Metro one and Delhi Metro projects; (d) financial closure of transmission projects; and (e) bidding for various civic and urban infrastructure projects.
Upon retiring from the current role, Ponnada would like to continue to be associated with providing legal services perhaps with a special focus on pro bono work.
Rakesh Bakshi is known as “Microsoft’s man in India”
Rakesh Bakshi obtained a Master’s Degree in Economics and a Law Degree from Punjab University. He started his career as a Research Associate with Centre for Research in Rural and Industrial Development before joining Punjab State Electronics and Development Corporation, a public sector company. Prior to joining Microsoft India almost twelve years ago, Bakshi worked with Fujitsu, a Japanese MNC.
Bakshi has been instrumental in setting up Microsoft’s presence in India by establishing six businesses and four legal entities, which now have more than 5,000 employees. Some specific accomplishments have been working with the Government of Karnataka in the year 2001 to support development of the ‘Zero Piracy Campaign’; and ‘Project Vikas’, in partnership with National Manufacturing Competitive Counsel (NMCC) which promotes productivity in manufacturing clusters, in the year 2005 to promote IT in industries which have never used IT. Bakshi has engaged with the Central and state governments to contribute to the key policy initiatives in the areas of IP, Competition and IT, and is on the Policy Committees of FICCI and CII. He has recently been awarded AsiaIP first ‘Annual IP In-house Counsel of the Year Award 2010’ for India.
Bakshi’s plans are to set the benchmark in not only setting up an in-house team of lawyers and public policy experts, but in also influencing the agenda that such an organization should own and drive. His task ahead goes beyond rendering legal services and encompasses delivering value in partnership with the business.
Thirumalesh Gangappa was the first Legal Counsel to be hired in Google India
Thirumalesh completed his LLB Degree from National Law School of India University (Bangalore) in 1996. In the same year, he joined Singhania & Co.’s Delhi office as a Senior Associate, where he worked till 1998. Amongst his various assignments, he has served as the Legal Counsel for Hewlett-Packard from 2000 to 2004 followed by a stint in Oracle India as the Legal Counsel from 2004 to 2006. Since 2006, Thirumalesh has been working with Google India as the General Counsel. His expertise covers the areas of contracts, negotiations and product launches.
Thirumalesh was the first legal counsel to join Google in India. When he had joined Google, it was quite new in India and he successfully handled various functions single-handedly, viz., supporting the litigation lawyers, intellectual property issues, venture capital funding concerns into Indian subsidiaries, real estate transactions amongst others. He has been responsible for customizing and localizing worldwide policies of Google Inc to suit Indian requirements. Thirumalesh is also on the Board of a few subsidiaries of Google in India.
Samuel Mani Kallupurakal heads the legal function of a global leader in the “next generation” of information technology and consulting
Samuel Mani holds a BA, LLB Degree from the National Law School of India University (Bangalore) and an LLM Degree from the University of Essex (United Kingdom). He worked as a Legal Advisor in Reliance Industries Ltd prior to joining Infosys Technologies Limited in December 2002. Currently, he is serving as the Head- Legal at Infosys. Samuel is particularly interested in commercial contracts and has spent a decade working on a variety of commercial contracts, primarily in the fields of information technology, business process outsourcing, and telecommunications.
Samuel has been managing the entire gamut of legal affairs across all of Infosys’ global operations, including those of its subsidiaries, and supervises a team of 35 legal counsel working across the globe. He has spoken extensively at various national and international forums, including International Technology Law Association Conference, UK’s Society for Computers Law Annual Lecture, Legal Counsel Congress India, amongst others.
Anindya Sircar leads the intellectual property team of Biocon, India’s first and leading bio-technology company
Anindya Sircar graduated in Chemistry from St. Xavier’s College (Kolkata) in 1991, and completed his post-graduation in Biochemistry from the University of Calcutta in 1993. He went on to do a PhD in Industrial Microbiology from Osmania University in 1997. In the same year, he joined the pharmaceutical wing of the R&D department of the Biocon Group – a premiere biotechnology company. He then branched out in the field of intellectual property rights and set up the IPR Division of Biocon. He completed his PhD in Intellectual Property Laws from NALSAR University of Law (Hyderabad) in 2007. Sircar is also a Registered Patent Agent.
With over 10 years of experience in handling different aspects of Intellectual Property, Sircar is credited with setting up the IP Department for the Biocon Group. When he had joined Biocon, the company had got only a few patents. Since then, Biocon’s patent portfolio totals nearly 900 applications worldwide, with over 180 granted patents. He has been actively contributing in patent awareness programs and other programs involving search techniques for patent and commercial information. Sircar is a member of various national bodies dedicated to promotion of IPRs, viz., Special Interest Group on IP of Association of Biotechnology Led Enterprises’ (ABLE); CII National Committee on Technology and IPR; National Committee of Intellectual Property Owners.
At Biocon, Sircar remains focused on developing cutting edge intellectual property as a core value differentiator.
Ashok Gupta is known as the ‘conscience keeper’
Gupta holds Masters Degrees in Commerce and Laws and is a qualified Company Secretary and Cost Accountant. He joined Unilever India in 1989 as the Legal Manager. He moved to Hindustan Unilever (HUL) in Mumbai in 1993 where he held various assignments ranging from restructuring indirect taxation portfolio, mergers and amalgamations and securing of intellectual property rights. Gupta was then seconded to Unilever at London for a period of two years to act as Senior Legal Adviser for Central Asia,Middle East and Africa Region. He came back to Unilever India and became the Company Secretary in the year 2005. He was elevated to the position of Executive Director-Legal at HUL in June 2007. Gupta joined Aditya Birla Group in March 2010 as the Group Legal Counsel. He has substantial experience in mergers & acquisitions.
Ashok Gupta was a key protagonist on the eight-member Management Committee at Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL). He successfully protected not just the HUL brands, but even the packaging of products in an industry that is plagued by counterfeits. His expertise in global M&As resulted in his handling the South Asian region for Unilever.
As the head of the legal function for the Aditya Birla Group, Gupta will be exploring various opportunities in acquisitions, mergers and divestitures. The focus will be on beefing up the legal operations in sync with the Group’s hectic M&A activity as witnessed in the recent past.
Amartya Sen is known as ‘the Mother Teresa of Economics’ for his work on welfare economics and human development theory
Amartya Sen studied at Presidency College (Kolkata), where he earned his BA in Economics. Subsequently in the same year, he was admitted to Trinity College, Cambridge (UK), where he earned a BA in 1956. He went on to complete his PhD from Cambridge in 1959. While teaching Economics at the Delhi School of Economics during 1961 to 1972, he also completed his magnum opus ‘Collective Choice and SocialWelfare’ in 1970. After a stint at the London School of Economics as Professor of Economics, he taught at the University of Oxford from 1977 to 1986. Thereafter he joined Harvard University. In 1998 he was appointed as Master of Trinity College, Cambridge. In January 2004, Sen returned to Harvard.
Sen published Poverty and Famines: An Essay on Entitlement and Deprivation in 1981, in which he demonstrated that famine occurs not only due to lack of food, but from inequalities built into mechanisms for distributing food. Additionally, his work in the field of development economics has had considerable influence in the formulation of the Human Development Report, published by the UNDP. He is seen as a ground-breaker among late twentieth-century economists for his work on ‘welfare economics’, which helped to reprioritize a significant sector of economists and the policies of the UN. Amongst the various honours bestowed on him, he received the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics for his work in welfare economics in 1998. In 1999, he was awarded the Bharat Ratna.
R Venkata Rao’s ultimate goal is to popularise NLSIU (Bangalore) to a level that in the future, Harvard Law School is referred to as the “Bangalore Law School of the West”
Venkata Rao’s academic qualifications include BA (Litt), MA (Litt), ML and PhD. He completed LLB in 1975 from Berhampur University in Orissa and ML in 1977 from Andhra University. His teaching career has been long and fruitful with thirty-one years of teaching experience, including post-graduate teaching. He served as the Dean of Faculty of Law, Andhra University prior to joining National Law School of India University (Bangalore) in 2009 as Vice-Chancellor. Rao’s areas of specilaisation include Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, Criminal Law, Jurisprudence and International Law.
Over the years, Rao has successfully guided 14 PhD and more than 70 M Phil scholars. Amongst his notable international assignments, Rao was invited to the Advisory Committee Meeting on the ‘Implementation of International Humanitarian Law’ by the University Centre for International Humanitarian Law at Geneva in 2007. The Advisory Committee Meeting discussed the modalities for working out an ambitious project on “Armed Conflicts and International Rule of Law”. Rao holds the rare distinction of being the only Indian among the 24 jurists invited for the meeting. He was awarded ‘The Best Teacher Award’ by the Government of Andhra Pradesh in 2006.
Venkata Rao aims to work towards making National Law School of India University (Bangalore) a harbinger of the new era in the next-generation reforms of legal education.
N.R. Madhava Menon is considered the father of legal reforms in India, who single handedly wrought fundamental changes in legal education.
N.R. Madhava Menon obtained BA Degrees in Science and Law from Kerala University and went on to pursue MA in Political Science from the University of Delhi. He began his teaching career at the Aligarh Muslim University, from where he obtained LLM and PhD Degrees. He spent several years at the Faculty of Law in University of Delhi where he also served as Head of Department in the mid-1980s. Menon was appointed as the first Director of the National Judicial Academy at Bhopal, an institute for training judges, in 2003.
Madhava Menon has worked for nearly five decades towards improving legal education in India. He pioneered concepts such as clinical legal education in India and took the lead in organising legal aid programmes. Menon was asked by the Bar Council of India to create a ‘Harvard of the East’ by introducing an integrated legal education course of five years, which led to the setting up of the National Law School of India University (NLSIU) at Bangalore. He is also the founder ofWest Bengal National University of Juridical Science (NUJS) in Kolkata. As the first Vice-Chancellor of NUJS, he is credited with the development of its infrastructure, educational curriculum and its reputation. He was honoured with Padma Shree for his contribution to public service in 2003, the first such award to a law teacher in India.
Menon is involved in his work as a member of the Commission on Centre State relations, where his role is to redesign and reinterpret constitutional provisions in a way that governance which is split between local bodies, states and the Centre is adapted to the changing times.
Upendra Baxi is the last word on human rights
Upendra Baxi earned his LLB from Rajkot (Gujrat) University and LLM Degrees from the University of Bombay and University of California (Berkeley). Additionally, he holds a degree of Doctorate of Juristic Sciences (SJD) from University of California. He began his teaching career at the Sydney University Law School, and was the youngest Law Professor in India when he was invited to the Faculty of Law (University of Delhi) in 1971 where he taught for 23 years. He has also been the Vice Chancellor of University of Delhi from 1990-1994. Since 1996, he is the Professor of Law in Development at the University ofWarwick (UK). He is also a former Ford Foundation Professor of Human Rights at theWest Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences, Kolkata.
Mool Chand Sharma is an eminent scholar of law who has always stood for use of law as a tool for social engineering
Mool Chand Sharma earned his LLM Degree from University of Delhi and Doctorate in Juridical Science (JSD) from University of NorthWest Chicago (USA). Sharma has spent a major part of his career teaching law in University of Delhi. Additionally, he has served in various capacities in the field of educational administration, as Proctor of University of Delhi, Registrar of University of Delhi, Officer-on-Special-Duty for Academic Affairs of University of Delhi, amongst others. He was also the Director of National Law University at Bhopal. In 2006, he was appointed as the Vice Chairperson of University Grants Commission (UGC) for three years. Currently, Sharma is serving as the first Vice- Chancellor of Central University of Haryana, the first Central University of the state. He is an expert in constitutional jurisprudence and human rights.
Sharma holds the distinction of being the first Professor of Law to be appointed to a key position like the Vice- Chairperson of UGC. In recognition of Sharma’s vast research experience and academic accomplishments, he was invited as Research Advisor by National Human Rights Commission. He has been Visiting Fellow and Teaching Fellow a in number of universities abroad including the University of Chicago and George Town University (Washington). Sharma has written extensively on issues of poverty, development and human rights. His work Rule of Law, Democracy and Human Rights has been very widely acclaimed. His contribution in the field of educational policy making and higher education administration is unparalleled. Amongst the many notable positions held by him, he has served as National Consultant of UGC on Human Rights Education and as Expert Legal Advisor with Law Commission of India.
Ranbir Singh’s administrative capabilities have positively influenced the legal education in the country
Ranbir Singh earned LLB, LLM, and PhD from Kurukshetra University and later joined there as the Faculty member in the Department of Law. In 1978, he moved to Maharshi Dayanand University at Rohtak as part of the founding Faculty and continued till 1998 in various capacities as Professor, Head, Dean and Proctor. On invitation from the National Law School of India University (Bangalore), he served as Professor of Law during 1996-97. He was the Vice-Chancellor of NALSAR University of Law (Hyderabad) and had been at its helm since its inception in 1998 upto 2008. He then moved to Delhi to set up another Law University viz., National Law University, where he is currently the Vice-chancellor.
Ranbir Singh has played an important role in revamping the legal education in the country. It was under Singh’s guidance that NALSAR became one of the prestigious law schools in the country. As a member of various policy making bodies he has played a crucial role in concretizing policy commitments and shaping the law to meet the ends of social justice. He has served as a Member of Legal Education Committee of the Bar Council, India Drafting Committee constituted by the ILO for the Bill on the Abolition of Child Labour, and the Sub-Committee on Legal Issues. He is also a Member of theWorking Group constituted by the National Human Rights Commission to formulate the National Action Plan for improving the promotion and protection of Human Rights
Veerappa Moily holds the distinction of being an Administrator, Author and a Minister
Veerappa Moily completed his BA from Government College (Mangalore) and LLB from University Law College (Bangalore). He began his career as a lawyer in Udupi Bar and has practiced law in the courts of Mangalore, Karnataka High Court and at the Supreme Court of India. He later joined politics and went on to become a member of the Legislative Assembly of Karnataka. Moily has led several projects and policies of the state of Karnataka in sectors such as Finance, Irrigation and Power, Urban Development and Infrastructure, Housing and Rural Development, Education and Culture. He also served as the Chief Minister of Karnataka from 1992 to 1994. Currently, he is the Cabinet Minister for Law, Justice and Company Affairs in the Government of India.
Moily was the chief architect of the new Common Entrance Test (CET) system launching an admission policy for technical education founded on merit, transparency and social justice. He was also solely responsible for establishing the nation’s leading law institute, the National Law School University. Moily is credited with drafting and implementing the Karnataka Land Reforms Act in 1974 which freed several lakh bonded labourers in the state of Karnataka. Additionally, he is also responsible for the implementation of economic reforms in Karnataka in 1992.
On the top of Moily’s agenda is the target to reduce the pendency of cases in courts from 15 years to three years by putting in motion a National Arrears Grid, which will monitor clearance of pending cases across the courts in India. E-courts, evening courts and fast-tracking of cases involving senior citizens, women and children will also be introduced. He also aims to create commercial courts within High Courts within two or three years.
P. Chidambaram has been a key player for more than a decade in pushing through the reforms that have helped spur India’s economic growth
P. Chidambaram graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Statistics from Presidency College (Chennai) and then received his LLB degree from the Law College of the University of Madras. He later went to the Harvard Business School where he obtained his MBA degree. In 1969, hewas enrolled as an Advocate in the Madras High Court and established a successful law practice. He was designated as a Senior Advocate in 1984. Chidambaram first got elected to Parliament in 1984 and has been elected six times since then. He has held the Commerce & Finance portfolios in various governments, notably from 1994 to 1996 and then again in 2004. In 2008, he moved to the Home Ministry.
As part of the team which laid the foundations for significant macro-economic reforms in 1991, Chidambaram played a key role in helping India move away from the “license-quota-permit raj” towards economic freedom. Economists acclaim his budget of 1996-97 as the “dream-budget”, in which he brought about discipline in Government spending and launched an ambitious tax reform programme to tackle the problem of growing fiscal deficit. His bold scheme to halt tax evasion, Voluntary Income Disclosure Scheme, also invited accolades. In the 2008 Budget, his move to waive off farmers’ debt has played a key role in boosting aggregate demand in the Indian economy, thereby protecting India from the impact of recession. As the Minister for Home Affairs, Chidambaram has launched an ambitious plan for restructuring internal security, particularly in the five Naxal affected states -West Bengal, Jharkhand, Orissa, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra. The new operation is aimed at reasserting the authority of the civil administration in the affected areas.
As the Home Minister, he is responsible for bringing various agencies together, which are responsible for law and order and to make them work in a cohesive manner.
Montek Singh Ahulwalia is a prominent policy-maker who played a key role in crafting reforms which helped integrate India with the world economy
Montek Singh Ahulwalia graduated with B.A. degree from St. Stephen’s College (University of Delhi). He also received B.A. degree and B.Phil degree from the University of Oxford. Ahluwalia joined theWorld Bank and became its youngest “Division Chief”. He later returned to India to become a lateral entrant into the Indian Administrative Service. He has been a Member of the Planning Commission as well as a Member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister. He became the first Director of the Independent Evaluation Office, International Monetary Fund in 2001. In 2004, he was appointed as Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission and was re-appointed to the post by the Government in 2009.
Ahluwalia is credited with supervising the content, tone and tenor of India’s fiscal liberalisation programme which was ushered in 1991. The achievements of Montek and his team were four-fold. Firstly, the reforms brought about stabilisation of the economy from a severe crisis in an exceptionally short time. Secondly, the economy was back to a growth rate faster than that prior to the crisis. Thirdly, the benefits of the growth process spread to a larger percentage of the population, in other words, a dramatic reduction was witnessed in the percentage of people below the poverty line. Fourthly, for the first time, the Indian economy opened up, it integrated with the world economy and restored the confidence in Indian businesses.
Ahluwalia faces the critical task of planning for the new economic environment. Since the Planning Commission is targeting average annual growth of 9 percent in its 11th Five-Year Plan, spanning 2007 to 2012, Montek will have to work towards ensuring that this growth rate is achieved and sustained.
Kapil Sibal is the ultimate “reasonable man”, and a renowned advocate
Kapil Sibal obtained his M.A. in History from St. Stephen’s College (University of Delhi); LLB from Faculty of Law (University of Delhi); and LLM from Harvard Law School. He joined the Bar in 1972. A year later, in 1973, he qualified for the Indian Administrative Service, but decided to set up his own law practice. He started practising law before the Supreme Court and several High Courts from 1977 and was designated as Senior Advocate in 1983. He served as the Additional Solicitor General of India between 1989 and 1990. In the 2004 General Elections, he was elected to the Parliament and inducted into the Cabinet as Union Minister for Science and Technology. In the 2009 elections he took charge of the key Human Resource Development Ministry.
Pursuant to taking charge of Ministry of HRD, Sibal has made a strong pitch to “detraumatise education” in India, and introduced a “no Board exam policy” for Class X CBSE students. Consequently, in a bid to reduce the “pressure” on children and parents, the marking system has been changed to grading formula for classes IX and X in the CBSE schools. In 1994, he was tittled as ‘Living Legend of Law’ by the International Bar Association. The Government of India honoured him with the Padma Bhushan in 2006 for his distinguished services in the field of public affairs.
Next on Sibal’s agenda is to put in place a single board exam in standard 12 across the country, as currently different boards take different exams with different marking systems. In another measure aimed at freeing the education sector from bureaucratic red tape, he plans to bring in a law to set up an ‘autonomous, independent’ agency for assessment and accreditation in higher education.
Nandan Nilekani is running one of the most watched projects in the world— giving every Indian a number
Nandan Nilekani graduated with a B. Tech in Electrical Engineering from IIT, Bombay in 1978. Thereafter, he joined Patni Computer Systems. He later helped Narayana Murthy in starting their own company, Infosys Technologies, a consulting and IT services company. Nilekani went on to become the Chief Executive Officer of Infosys in March 2002, taking over from Murthy, a position he held till April 2007. He left Infosys in July 2009 to serve as the Chairperson of the Unique Identification Authority of India in the rank of a Cabinet Minister, upon invitation from the Prime Minister.
In March 2002, Nilenkani took over as Infosys CEO and presided over some unique milestones for the company. He oversaw the company’s biggest ever acquisition (Australian telecom services vendor) in 2003. He also expanded Infy’s global delivery model across newer geographies. On a strategic level, Nilekani led Infosys in grooming the ‘next-generation’ leaders. He devised the theory of ‘organizational longevity’ focusing on creating a set of leaders such that “collectively they were capable and individually they were more capable in some of the things.” Being a global face of Indian IT industry, Nilenkani has performed a stellar role for NASSCOM and Bangalore chapter of ‘The IndUS Entrepreneurs’, both of which he cofounded. He was one of the youngest entrepreneurs to join Global Top 20 leaders on theWorld Economic Forum Foundation Board in 2006. The government conferred him with Padma Bhushan in 2006.
On top of Nilekani’s agenda, lies the beginning of the issuance of Unique Identification numbers. Between August 2010 and February 2011, he plans the rolling out of UID enrollment. The goal is that in the next five years or so, more than 600 million p
Sam Pitroda is an inventor, entrepreneur and policy-maker who heralded the telecom revolution in India
Sam Pitroda completed his Masters in Physics and Electronics from Vadodara University. He did another Masters Degree in Electrical Engineering from Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago. Through the late 1960s and early 1970s Pitroda was involved in cutting-edge technology research work in telecommunications. In 1984, he returned to India and started the Center for Development of Telematics, an autonomous telecom R&D organization. In 1987, he became an advisor to the then Prime Minister and worked on India’s telecommunications policies. In 2004, he was invited by the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, to head the National Knowledge Commission of India, a position which he held till 2005. In October 2009, Pitroda was appointed as Advisor to the Prime Minister on Public Information Infrastructure and Innovations with the rank of Cabinet Minister.
Sam Pitroda has been responsible for shaping India’s foreign and domestic telecommunications policies. He is credited with ushering the telecommunication revolution in India and more articularly the yellow-signed Public Call Offices (PCOs) that introduced affordable and easy domestic and international public telephone facility across the country. He is also widely regarded as one of the earliest pioneers of hand-held computing because of his invention of the Electronic Diary in 1975. During his tenure as the Chairman of the National Knowledge Commission, around 300 recommendations on 27 focus areas covering wide-ranging aspects for improving knowledge related institutions and infrastructure in the country were submitted. In 2009, Pitroda was awarded the Padma Bhushan for his contribution to Science and Engineering.
In his current role, Pitroda has to work towards creating information infrastructure for enhancing delivery of services in various areas. Additionally, he will also be
Duvvuri Subbarao is a distinguished administrator with wide-ranging experience in public finance, both at national and international levels
Subbarao graduated in Physics from IIT, Kharagpur in 1969 and went on to receive Masters Degree in Physics, from IIT, Kanpur. He topped the IAS examination in 1972 and was assigned the Andhra Pradesh cadre. He later earned a Masters degree in Economics from Ohio State University (USA). Subbarao worked as the Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Finance between 1988 and 1993. He was the Lead Economist in the World Bank from 1994 to 2004. Later he was appointed to the Prime Ministers’ Economic Advisory Council from 2005 to 2007 before he was elevated as the Finance Secretary in 2007. In 2008, he was appointed the twenty-second Governor of Reserve Bank of India.
Subbarao proved to be an able crisis manager within 48 hours of taking over the reins of RBI in September 2008 when the world was plunged into the biggest financial crisis since the 1930s. Despite the poor health of Indian banks at the time coupled with the collapse of market confidence, his response was immediate- injecting vast amounts of liquidity into the country’s financial system. In the subsequent months, he also slashed the policy rate, cut the cash-reserve ratio and made it easier for banks to buy government paper. These moves generated huge amounts of liquid cash to boost the economy. Subbaro’s monetary stimulus was one of the most aggressive in Asia.
Subbarao’s task ahead is complicated, which includes combating the fiscal deficit while ensuring price stability.
Ajay Raju is recognized as the “go-to” strategic advisor for multinational companies seeking inbound or outbound, complex and commercially significant India-related transactions. Raju’s clients rave about his ability to “parachute” down when a company finds itself in India with legal troubles or opportunities. His ability to formulate decisive and effective plans of action using both back channel diplomacy and, when needed, aggressive legal ammunition have secured his reputation as a problem solver of last resort.
Ajay Raju obtained his JD (Law) Degree from James E. Beasley School of Law, Temple University (USA) in 1996. He joined Reed Smith LLP, a reputed global law firm, in the year 2003. Currently, he is the Managing Partner of the Philadelphia office of Reed Smith and also the Vice Chair of Business & Finance Department of the firm. In 2006, Raju was elected into a Fellowship in the American College of Mortgage Attorneys in recognition of his national reputation in the real estate and capital market areas. Raju focuses his practice on structured finance and real estate capital market transactions.
Raju’s accumulated experience representing some of the world’s largest companies in myriad high-profile, high-stakes transactions and his formidable knowledge of both India’s and America’s legal and regulatory framework have put him in a league of his own. As strategic counsel to global companies, Raju is widely recognized as someone who plays more than a legal advisory role in deals; as a consummate connector of people, ideas and opportunities, he is adept at bringing parties together and nurturing business ideas and opportunities for parties from conception to development. His multifaceted roles as a senior partner and manager of a global law firm, a television personality, an opinion leader in the US markets on topics ranging from securitization to legal process outsourcing, and a promoter and facilitator of trade and business between India and the US, have won the acclaim of the business and legal communities in India and the US. In 2009.
An indefatigable promoter of India, Raju serves to amplify the global message that India’s legal landscape is a reliably predictable platform for global business enthusiasts.
Abhijit Mukhopadhyay looks after the legal functions of one of the largest diversified groups in the world spanning all the continents
Abhijit Mukhopadhyay holds Bachelor Degrees in Commerce and Law (both from India and UK). He is also a qualified Company and Chartered Secretary in India and the UK. Mukhopadhyay has substantial experience as Heads of Legal and Secretarial functions in Ranbaxy Laboratories, Maruti Suzuki, Dunlop India, Indian Aluminium, HMT and Gestetner India. Presently, Mukhopadhyay is the Group Senior Vice President in the Hinduja Group, a multi-billion dollar transnational Group operating in 30 countries, and is based in London. He is also a Non-Executive Director on the Board of several Group companies in the UK, Austria, Mauritius and British Virgin Islands.
Mukhopadhyay has successfully supervised several of Hinduja Group’s acquisitions in Europe. His representation for Hinduja Group at the Estonian Supreme Court in a trademark dispute made history and is considered a landmark judgment in the European Union. He was also involved in a well-publicized dispute between Maruti Suzuki and the Government of India which led to the incorporation of multiparty arbitration provisions in the ICC arbitration regulations. In India, Mukhopadhyay has been actively associated with various key bodies as the Chairman, National Committee on Law, CII; Member, Corporate Affairs in FICCI and ASSOCHAM; and Member of the Secretarial Standard Board of Institute of Company Secretaries of India. In the UK, Mukhopadhyay is a Member of CII’s India Business Forum, which promotes trade between India and the UK.
Mukhopadhyay plans to share his rich experience in Corporate Law which he has gained through the years, by way of talks, lectures and writings.
Rajendra K. Pachauri is an international statesman whose name is synonymous with climate change and environment
Rajendra K. Pachauri commenced his career with the Diesel LocomotiveWorks (Varanasi) where he was in a managerial position. Later, he joined the North Carolina State University (USA), from where he obtained an MS in Industrial Engineering, a PhD in Industrial Engineering, and a PhD in Economics. Since 2002, he has been serving as the Chairman of IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), established byWorld Meteorological Organization and United Nations Environment Programme. He is also the Director General of Tata Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) in New Delhi, an institution devoted to promoting sustainable development. He has served many societies and commissions, including being the Chairman of theWorld Energy Council (1993-1995), and the President of the Asian Energy Institute (since 1992).
Pachauri has played a crucial role in building up and disseminating greater knowledge about “man-made climate change” and in laying the foundations for the measures needed to counteract such change. His other notable achievement has been conceptualising and launching “Lighting a Billion Lives” Initiative in 2005 to bring electricity to energy starved rural areas of India through solar energy. Acknowledging his immense contribution to the field of environment, he was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2001 and Padma Vibhushan in 2008. He accepted the Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of the IPCC, along with co-recipient Al Gore, in 2007. In November 2009, Pachauri was rated fifth in the list of “Top 100 Global thinkers” by Foreign Policy magazine, for “ending the debate over whether climate change matters.”
Besides his primary commitments to TERI and the IPCC, he is active in several international fora dealing with the subject of climate change and its policy dimensions, including the PM’s Advisory Council on Climate Change.
MC Mehta has made the fight to protect India’s environment his unending mission
M.C. Mehta (Mahesh Chander Mehta) earned his MA Degree in Political Science and Law Degree from Jammu University. He started his practice in Jammu & Kashmir High Court. His career as a Supreme Court lawyer began in 1983. In the year 1984, he began focusing on environmental litigation. He is also one of the founders of the Indian Council for Enviro-Legal Action (ICELA), and the Director of the M.C. Mehta Environmental Foundation in New Delhi.
MC Mehta is a lawyer by profession and an environmentalist by choice. Following his petition in 1984 to protect the Taj Mahal from air pollution and a decade long battle, the Supreme Court delivered a historic judgment in 1996 banning polluting industries near the monument. Since then, he has been associated with some of the landmark environmental cases in India, leading to such achievements as ‘inclusion of the right to a healthy environment’ as part of the “right to life” guaranteed by Article 21 of the Constitution; banning of industries polluting the Ganges river; declaration of Delhi ridge as “Reserved Forest”. An ardent supporter of alternative energy, he brought about the transition of New Delhi’s transport system (buses, auto-rickshaws etc.) to become the largest green based transit system in the world. Mehta was conferred with the Goldman Environment Prize for Asia in 1996, and Ramon Magsaysay Award for Public Service in 1997 for his inspiring environmental activism.
In addition to handling major environmental cases, Mehta is working actively to create environmental awareness through seminars, conferences, ‘Green Marches’, tree plantation and field actions at the grass roots level.
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