A Government Order was issued by the Public (Law Officers) Department on Wednesday appointing Senior Counsel Vijay Narayan as the new Advocate General of the State. He would be succeeding Senior Counsel R. Muthukumaraswamy who tendered his resignation on Tuesday, just days before completing one year in office.
Mr. Narayan is the nephew of Attorney General K.K. Venugopal and grandson of M.K. Nambyar, a legendary lawyer acclaimed for his contribution towards development of constitutional law in the country. He had completed his graduation from Loyola College in 1977 and obtained a law degree from the Madras Law College in 1982.
His maternal grandfather Sardar K.M. Panikkar was an eminent historian, journalist and a statesman besides having been Indian ambassador to China, France and Egypt; he was also the vice chancellor of universities of Kashmir and Mysuru. Mr. Panikkar was also one of the three members of the States Reorganisation Commission in 1953.
Mr. Narayan had argued a wide variety of cases including those on service law, labour law, constitutional law, administrative law and commercial law. In consideration of his practice, the Madras High Court had designated him as a Senior Advocate in 2004.
He had conducted cases in the Supreme Court as well as several other High Courts.
Mr. Narayan is the incumbent president of the Madras Bar Association (MBA), an 152-year-old association of lawyers.
Elated over the appointment, MBA secretary V.R. Kamalanathan said that it was a moment of great pride for his association to see its president get appointed as Advocate General, the highest law officer of the State. “This is a time for celebrations and we wish our president all the best in his new assignment,” he said.