National Law School of India University in Bengaluru (NLSIU)’s Unnati Ashish Ghia won the U.S.-India Comparative Constitutional Law Debate finale organized by the U.S. Consulate General in Chennai on September 14.
The U.S. Consul General Robert Burgess and Supreme Court Justice Indira Banerjee presented the trophy to the winner at an award ceremony here.
The event, organised in the Loyola College premises, saw sixteen finalists from Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Kerala competing in the final.
Nearly 270 participants took part in the preliminary rounds of the debate held in July and August in four cities across South India: Kochi, Bengaluru, Tiruchirappalli, and Chennai. The top four debaters from each region comprised the final 16 participants.
U.S. Consul General Robert Burgess said, “We recognise the strong bonds between the United States and India as the world’s oldest and largest democracies. The U.S. Consulate General is pleased to have organised the U.S - India Comparative Constitutional Debates with partners across South India to promote greater appreciation for values, rights, and responsibilities inherent in democratic societies.”
The judging panel for the final contest comprised of Dr. Abhinav Chandrachud, Attorney, High Court of Mumbai; Prof. Mark Tushnet, Harvard Law School; Dr. Menaka Guruswamy, Senior Advocate, Supreme Court of India; Geeta Ramaseshan, Advocate, High Court of Madras; Lauren Lovelace, Consul for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, U.S. Consulate General in Chennai and Justice Prabha Sridevan, former Judge, High Court of Madras.