Chennai: “CJI: Do u want to sit & argue?
92-yr-old Parasaran: It’s ok. You’re too kind. The tradition of the Bar has been to stand & argue, and I’m concerned about the tradition. My last wish before I die, is to finish this case.”
That's one of many posts in social media to hail Senior Counsel K. Parasaran, who at an advanced age of 92, fought the case for Ram Lalla in the Supreme Court, exhibiting awesome energy of mind and body through the 40 grueling days of final arguments, often dipping into his deep knowledge of the ancient scriptures to win all-round accolades.
The twitter post by @SirJadeja was recalling a widely reported incident in the court when Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi politely asked Parasaran, considering his advanced age more than his professional fame, if he would like to sit and argue his case. ‘Padma Vibhushan’Parasaran, who had served as Attorney General of India for six long years till 1989, was even more polite in thanking the CJI and telling him he would rather not seek exemption from the “tradition of the Bar to stand and argue”.
Such has been his deep commitment towards practising the right court manners while propounding his legal knowledge and professional competence, not to forget his famed practice of drawing heavily from the Upanishads, Gita and other scriptures to buttress his case arguments with traditional Indian values.
Some of those awestruck followers of the court events have tweeted a multitude of requests to the Union Government that this ‘Bhishmacharya’ of India's legal profession, this ‘guru from Tamil Nadu’ must be decorated with Bharat Ratna. “Periyar broke Ram statue in TN, Kalaignar said there is no proof for existence of Ram. But today, we have from the same TN (Srirangam), Shri Parasaran as leading counsel appeared for Ram Lalla Virajman. Lord Ram returns after 491 years of exile & we are blessed to see this”, said one among the multitude of admirers on twitter.
The extensive media reportage during the 40 days of intense arguments in the court had a liberal dose of Parasaran's submissions before the Bench, his responses to the clarifications sought by the judges. He would go well prepared every day for the sessions that began at 10.30 in the morning and closed around 4 or 5 pm. And during those sessions, he would often face the mercurial Rajeev Dhavan representing the Muslim side. The veteran would forever stay calm, even when Dhavan tore up pages or termed as 'foolish' someone from the Hindu side. One media report refers to how when the arguments concluded on October 16 and the court reserved orders, Parasaran waited outside for 15 minutes to meet Dhavan and take a photograph with him. That was a great lesson not just for Bhishma's team but to the entire lawyer community.
“My last wish before I die is to see a logical end to this case”, Parasaran had said during his court arguments, pleading with the Constitution Bench that the entire disputed land belongs to his client, Ram Lalla. Well now, he has achieved victory in the court and going by his robust physical and mental health, the grand old man of Mylapore is sure to score the century while getting several more cases to their logical end.
