Noted jurist Fali S Nariman passes away at 95

Satya Prakash

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Noted jurist and doyen of the Indian Bar Fali S Nariman passed away here on Wednesday following a brief illness. He was 95. He is survived by his son and former Supreme Court Judge Rohinton F Nariman and daughter Anaheeta F Nariman.

A fearless voice: former J&K governor Vohra

Former Jammu and Kashmir Governor NN Vohra on Wednesday condoled the demise of noted jurist Fali S Nariman, saying he was a fearless voice on the functioning of the judicial system, the polity and the governance of India. “I had known and admired Fali Nariman for long years. Besides being an iconic jurist, he was an outstanding thinker and writer who fearlessly voiced his highly balanced views on varied important issues, particularly on the functioning of the judicial system, the polity and the governance of India. His passing on has created an unfordable chasm in the intellectual society of the national capital. Pray to the Lord to rest his soul in eternal peace,” Vohra said.

His burial will take place at 10 am at Parsi Aramgah near Khan Market here on Thursday, family sources said, adding this will be followed by Uthamna (prayer meeting) at 4 pm at the Parsi Anjuman (Dharamsala) at Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg.

Titan among legal luminaries: Prez

I am saddened to learn that Fali Nariman, a titan among legal luminaries, is no more. His contributions in enriching Constitutional practices will be remembered for long. President Droupadi Murmu

His contributions to the field of law were immense, leaving an indelible mark on Indian jurisprudence. Heartfelt condolences to his family friends. PM Narendra Modi

His voice represented the conscience of a generation … he wrote and spoke with clarity and candour. A towering intellectual of our era has sadly passed on. CJI DY Chandrachud

Born in Rangoon (Myanmar) on January 10, 1929, Nariman studied law at the Government Law College, Mumbai, and started his legal practice in the Bombay High Court in 1950 and was designated a senior advocate in 1961. Later, he shifted to Delhi where he was appointed Additional Solicitor General (ASG) by the Indira Gandhi government in 1972. However, he resigned as ASG against the imposition of Emergency in June 1975.

A recipient of Padma Bhushan (1991) and Padma Vibhushan (2007) and a former Rajya Sabha member, Nariman has authored several books, including ‘Before the Memory Fades’, ‘The State of the Nation’, ‘India’s Legal System: Can it be Saved?’ and ‘God Save the Hon’ble Supreme Court’.

He was part of several landmark cases during his 70-year-long career. These included Golaknath case (1967) in which the top court ruled that Parliament cannot make laws that infringe on the fundamental rights of citizens and the historic Kesavananda Bharati case (1973) in which the top court propounded the basic structure doctrine, putting a fetter on Parliament’s power to amend the basic features of the Constitution.

Again, he was there in the Supreme Court Advocate-on-Record Association case (1993) in which the top court set up the Collegium System of judicial appointment. He also successfully opposed the 99th Constitutional Amendment and National Judicial Appointment Commission (NJAC) in 2015 which had sought to do away with the Collegium System.

He was also there in the SP Gupta case (1981) in which the top court ruled that the primacy of the CJI’s recommendation in judicial appointment and transfer could be turned down by the government on cogent grounds.

In the historic Bhopal gas tragedy case, he represented Union Carbide. However, he later admitted that it was a mistake to appear for Union Carbide. He was also a part of the TMA Pai Foundation case in which the top court recognised the autonomy of private educational institutions under Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution, allowing them to operate without undue government interference.

In the Narmada rehabilitation case, Nariman appeared for the Gujarat Government but chose to quit after news reports of attacks on Christians and burning of copies of the Bible. Similarly, in the Cauvery water dispute case, he represented the Karnataka Government in the Supreme Court, irrespective of the party in power. However, on September 30, 2016, Nariman refused to represent the Karnataka Government over his differences with the state government on non-compliance of the top court’s order asking it to release 6,000 cusecs of water from the Cauvery to Tamil Nadu.

Nariman was again at the forefront in the Nabam Rebia case (2016) wherein the top court ruled that a Governor could act only on the ‘aid and advice’ of the Council of Ministers and the Chief Minister. He had argued that a Governor did not have the power to advance the Assembly session as it could only be done on the ‘aid and advice’ of the Council of Ministers headed by the Chief Minister.

During the Covid crisis, Nariman represented the Parsi community in a dispute over the protocol and standard operating procedure for handling of bodies of Parsi Zoroastrians and installing of metallic nets above ‘Tower of Silence’ to ensure that birds did not feed on the bodies and carry the virus elsewhere.