Gopal Subramanium

The post colonial-era building with the red sandstone dome on Delhi’s Bhagwaan Dass Road is home to an elite class of lawyers, who are likely to be the most expensive in the world: they are typically paid between Rs 5 and 15 lakh per hearing.

Interviews by Legally India with more than 32 Delhi lawyers who brief seniors in the Supreme Court and Delhi high court reveal all…

Chief Justice of India HL Dattu and Justice Amitava Roy yesterday (31 August) granted a stay on the Rajasthan high court’s judgment delivered on August 10 criminalising the Jain community’s practice of Santhara – meaning abstinence from food and water by a person, who awaits death – and issued notice to the respondents in the case.

Senior counsel Gopal Subramanium will again be amicus curiae in the Padmanabha Swamy temple case, reported The Hindu, with the Times of India reporting that he would be visiting the temple in Kerala this weekend.

The former solicitor general had withdrawn from the case in August despite the Supreme Court practically begging for him to stay on following his scuppered nomination to the Supreme Court bench.

Supreme Court justices TS Thakur and Anil R Dave asked Gopal Subramanium to reconsider his recusal as the amicus curiae in the Padmanabhaswamy temple treasure case, because he had already put significant work into the case, reported The Hindu.

Subramanium had announced, as reported on 5 August, that he would withdraw from the case.

In June Subramanium had bowed out of the Supreme Court judgeship nomination process after pressure from the government, vowing that out of a sense of propriety, he therefore wouldn’t practice in the Supreme Court until the current Chief Justice of India (CJI) RM Lodha retired. In July he also rejected the Supreme Court’s plea to act as the special public prosecutor in the coal scam cases.

His report in the temple case was harshly critical of the temple’s administrators and the royal family, having found a web of trusts, bank accounts, and a lot of silver, gold and a gold plating machine during his lengthy investigation of the temple. Senior advocate Harish Salve is appearing for the royal family, with KK Venugopal appearing for the trustees, who both criticised Subramanium’s report.

The Supreme Court has appointed senior advocate RS Cheema as the special public prosecutor (SPP) in the Coalgate scam special court trial, reported the PTI, presided over by additional sessions judge Bharat Parashar.

A week ago the bench of Chief Justice RM Lodha, Justice Madan B Lokur and Justice Kurian Joseph had heavily pushed for Gopal Subramanium, who bowed out of the apex court judgeship process, to become SPP.

Chief Justice of India (CJI) RM Lodha said that senior counsel Gopal Subramanium, who recently withdrew from the process to become a Supreme Court judge after government leaks about his suitability, should be the special public prosecutor in the Coalgate scam cases, reported the PTI.

Lodha, who had expressed his regrets about Subramanium's withdrawal from the judgeship process, told the bar appearing before him and two other judges: "If I failed in something you [lawyers appearing in the matter] persuade [Subramanium]... We want a person of impeccable integrity and fine legal mind."

The Supreme Court collegiums turned down the government’s advice to “reconsider” its recommendation to elevate Karnataka high court justice Manjunath to chief justice at Punjab & Haryana, reported NDTV.

The Chief Justice of India, R M Lodha had criticized the government, two weeks ago, for dropping former Solicitor General Gopal Subramanium's name from the panel of names suggested by the collegium for appointment as Supreme Court judges.

During the retirement function of Justice BS Chauhan, Chief Justice of India (CJI) RM Lodha said that he had requested Gopal Subramanium to withdraw his resignation from the Supreme Court bench elevation process, reported the Hindustan Times. However, the senior counsel wrote a "30-word regret letter" reiterating his withdrawal from the process, which the CJI discussed with the collegium and two future CJI's and decided not to "pursue" further.

Lodha also said at the function that he was critical of the government's decision to separate Subramanium's file from the other three candidates who were recommended by the collegium. "I have taken objection to the segregation, unilaterally done by the executive without my knowledge and concurrence. It was not proper."

"In the last 20 years, I have fought for independence of the judiciary and for me this is one subject that is non-negotiable... I will be the first man to leave this chair if I know independence of the judiciary has been compromised; I will not hold my office even for a second then."

Law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad told the Hindustan Times: "The government has the highest regard for the judiciary, including the independence of the Supreme Court and all other courts of India. It also has the highest regard for the Chief Justice of India."

Supreme Court senior advocate Uday U Lalit will be elevated to the apex court’s roster, it has been confirmed, as former solicitor general Gopal Subramanium withdrew his candidature facing controversy over his elevation.

Senior counsel and Supreme Court judge candidate Gopal Subramanium has sent a rather candid letter to the Chief Justice of India (CJI) withdrawing his candidature.

Former solicitor general (SG) Gopal Subramanium had written a letter to former law minister Kapil Sibal during the 2G scam, denying allegations of having “interacted with any lawyer” – allegations on the basis of which the new government has tried to veto his name for elevation to the SC as judge, reported the Express.

Subramanium wrote the five-page letter on 21 July 2011, a week after he resigned as SG, stating: “As far as 2G case goes, I was shocked to see that the extent of criminality wasn’t revealed to me by the government on its own. I have been hurt by the kind of media reports which have appeared about me. I just wish to put it on record for you that I never ever interacted with any lawyer in the case.”

Former solicitor general Gopal Subramanium’s name has not been cleared for elevation as a Supreme Court judge by the government which cleared the names of senior advocate Rohinton Nariman, Calcutta High Court Chief Justice Arun Mishra and Orissa High Court Chief Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel for the elevation, reported the Express.

The government has reportedly based its decision on reasons including an adverse intelligence bureau (IB) report and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) files against Subramanium relating to appearing in the 2G scam, and the supposed existence of a taped phone conversation between him and Niira Radia. 

Subramanium would have gone on to become the Chief Justice of India (CJI) had his name been cleared but now the government has the option to sit on his file independently.

Former SC judge VR Krishna Iyer appealed to Modi to reconsider the centre’s stand not to approve Subramanium’s elevation and stop an “indefensible disaster” from happening, reported The Hindu.

The Times of India took a brief look on the precedents set in judicial appointments in India and contrasted the principles with those followed in the US and Canada.

The law ministry has returned the file to elevate senior counsel Gopal Subramanium to the Supreme Court bench to the collegium, which will again have to reconsider whether it wants to elevate the advocate, though the ministry cleared the elevation of senior counsel Rohinton Nariman and high court chief justices Arun Mishra and Adarsh Kumar Goes for the president's confirmation, reported The Hindu.

The collegium of the Supreme Court has the option to again put forward Subramanium, which the government would have to go with, contrary to earlier opinions by advocates suggesting the government would have the option of delaying elevations indefinitely by sitting on files and never returning them to the collegium.

Facing a long string of retirements during his term, Chief Justice of India (CJI) RM Lodha has recommended the elevation of two former solicitor generals to the apex court.

Senior counsel Gopal Subramanium has joined English barristers’ chamber 3 Verulam Buildings as an associate member and arbitrator.