1. On August 5, 1991, this person became the first Indian woman Chief Justice of a High Court. She took up law in England because it was one of the few things one could do without attending classes. She went on to become the first woman to top the London Bar exams in 1958, and was a champion of women’s rights and the gay rights movement. She wrote a book which explains the constitution to children and her son is a well-known author. Who was this incredible lady of justice?
2. Bhimrao Ramji Sakpal was independent India’s first law minister, and also a scholar and prolific student. He was renowned for his research in law, economics and political science. He campaigned and negotiated for India’s independence and advocated for political rights and social freedom for Dalits. When registering his name, his father changed ‘Sakpal’ to reflect the fact that they came from a village in Ratnagiri district. On November 25, 1949, after two years of immense work, he presented to India something that outlined how the nation would function. How better do we know this barrister and what did he give the nation?
3. Anna Chandy was born in Thiruvananthapuram in 1905. In 1926, she became the first woman in Kerala to get a law degree. She founded a magazine called Shrimati in which she promoted women’s rights. In 1937, she was appointed a munsif in Travancore by the Dewan and then, in 1959, she took on her ultimate post in the Kerala High Court. This predates an appointment made in 1962 of Elizabeth Lane for the same post in a county court in England. This tentatively gave Chandy what record in Europe and Asia?
4. Womesh Chandra Bonnerjee joined the firm of W.P. Gillanders, attorneys of the Calcutta Supreme Court, as a clerk in 1862. He became the first president of the Indian National Congress in 1885 and then moved to Britain. In 1892, he was made the candidate for the Liberal Party in his constituency. This made him the first Indian to contest elections in which entity?
5. Sir Ashutosh Mukherjee was a barrister and educator who founded the Bengal Technical Institute, Hazra Law College, and the Calcutta Mathematical Society. In 1914, two British chemists, Professors Simonsen and MacMahon, realised that scientific research in India could be stimulated if there was an annual meeting of researchers. Sir Mukherjee presided over the first one which had more than a hundred scientists from India and abroad. What was this entity whose 105th edition took place in Manipur University earlier this year?
6. Sir Ponnambala Thiaga Rajan started practising as an advocate in 1917. In 1920, he joined the South Indian Liberal Federation (SILF) and was elected to the Legislative Council and eventually even served as Chief Minister of Madras Presidency for five months in 1936. SILF was known by another name and when Sir Rajan floated a new party, it took on that name. After winning a seat in the 1951 Assembly elections, the party was eventually dissolved. What was the name of this party?
7. This particular Act came into existence in 2005 under the UPA government. The precursors to this Act were in 1987, and many such State-level Acts were introduced, including one in Tamil Nadu in 1997. It was brought in to counter the Official Secrets Act of 1923. Any Indian citizen can use the Act and currently a sum of ₹0 is the application fee. What is this vital act?
8. The Supreme Court of India is designed and shaped in such a way that it represents a certain entity. The Central Wing comprises the Chief Justice’s Court, with two large courtrooms on either side. Below them are the Right and Left Wings. Dr. Rajendra Prasad had once said “the two pans of the ______ of justice have to be held evenly”. What does this allude to?
9. The seal of the Supreme Court of India is a wheel with 24 spokes. It is referred to “as the wheel of righteousness, encompassing truth, goodness and equity”. From which ancient monument is the design taken?
10. This person joined as a lawyer with Dada Abdulla and Sons in KwaZulu-Natal because they needed someone fluent in Gujarati to settle a financial dispute with a relative. On his first visit to the courthouse, the local magistrate asked him to remove his turban, which he declined to do and walked out. This was reported in the local newspaper. Another incident on a train journey made him take up the fight against racial oppression. Who was this lawyer who went on to become famous worldwide for his actions?
Answers
1. Justice Leila Seth
2. B.R. Ambedkar, Constitution of India
3. The first woman judge
4. British House of Commons
5. Indian Science Congress
6. Justice Party
7. Right To Information (RTI) Act
8. Balancing scales
9. Ashoka Pillar in Sarnath
10. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi
A molecular biologist from Madurai, our quizmaster enjoys trivia and music, and is working on a rock ballad called ‘Coffee is a Drink, Kaapi is an Emotion’. @bertyashley