Libraries Of Leaders: On The Bookshelves Of India’s Senior Counsels

Last week we took a peak into the reading lists of young lawyers who had established formidable reputations at the bar in a relatively short time. This week we asked three senior counsels, who are among the top lawyers in the country, to pick some favourites from their bookshelves. Here is a look at what Dushyant Dave, Siddharth Luthra and Arvind Datar read and recommend.

1. Dushyant Dave

Dushyant Dave is the president of the Supreme Court Bar Association, and one of the most respected members of the bar. He has argued thousands of cases in a career spanning over three decades. His practice is wide-ranging, and includes constitutional, administrative, civil, corporate and arbitration matters . Reading shaped his life, especially his professional life, he told BloombergQuint.

1. Glimpses of World History by Jawaharlal Nehru

The book is a collection of 196 letters that Nehru wrote to his then 13-year-old daughter Indira between 1930 and 1933 while he was in prison. Simply written, the letters explain the rise and fall of the great civilisations of the world, while also dwelling on powerful and influential personalities and regimes. What makes the book special was that Nehru had no access to a reference library, and relied solely on his notes.

2. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

This is the story of a foundling (Heathcliff) who falls in love with his adopted father’s biological daughter while her brothers attempt to thwart his wooing. Heathcliff leaves home after becoming convinced that his love is not reciprocated. He returns a successful, wealthy and vengeful man. Dave found the characterisation in the book special.

3. My Son, My Son by Howard Spring

This is a story of an unlikely friendship between an Englishman and an Irishman; the friendship between their sons and the circumstances that eventually tears them the two boys apart in their adulthood. It is a poignant narrative that explores the aspirations people have for their children and how they don’t often materialise .

2. Siddharth Luthra

Siddharth Luthra was the Additional Solicitor General of India between 2012 and 2014 and is considered an authority on criminal and constitutional law. The Cambridge-educated Luthra wasn't always inclined towards the law and wanted instead to be a journalist or architect, he told the English daily Hindustan Times in an interview. Here is a look at what he recommended to us this week.

1) Zafarnama by Guru Gobind Singh

This is one of Luthra’s all time favourite books . It is a victory letter written by the tenth Sikh spiritual leader Guru Gobind Singh, in flawless Persian verse to the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. Through the letter, Guru Gobind Singh criticizes Aurangzeb’s tyrannical leadership and lists his shortcomings as a human being . The Guru also claims moral victory at not having been captured by the huge Mughal force assembled for the purpose , and goes on to say that his faith in god remains unshaken despite the loss of several loved ones to the offensive . One of Luthra’s favourite passages from the book follows

2. Gulbadan: Portrait of a Rose Princess at the Mughal Court by Rumer Godden and Helen Topsfield

The story draws from the personal memoirs of Gulbadan, one of the daughters of Mughal emperor Babur. It is a fictional account of Babur setting off on the conquest of Hindustan, the journey to India, subsequent wars and close shaves and life at court under the reign of three Mughal emperors. What attracted Luthra to the book was that it was on Ruskin Bond’s reading list .

3. Land of the Seven Rivers: A Brief History of India's Geography by Sanjeev Sanyal

The book explores how the geography of India shaped the evolution of history and culture of the nation. In-depth research coupled with historic facts make the book a riveting read.

3) Arvind Datar

Arvind Datar is a renowned constitutional and corporate lawyer, considered an authority on taxation law. He is also an author and has written books such as Nani Palkhivala: The Court Room Genius, and commentaries on constitutional and taxation law. These are a few books that find a prominent spot in his bookshelf.

1. The Story of Philosophy by Will Durant

The book is a summary of the thoughts and opinions of leading philosophers from across the globe. The engaging style of writing and the lucid manner in which these ideas are conveyed to the reader is what Datar found appealing about the book .

2. The Great Arc of India by John Keay

This is the story of an audacious survey of the Indian subcontinent which took almost 50 years to complete and resulted in the first accurate measurement of the height of the region’s tallest peak. It details the trial and tribulations faced by the surveyors ranging from malarial jungles to snow-capped peaks.

3) Roses in December by MC Chagla

This is the biography of a man who became the first Indian Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court, then an Ambassador and a Union Minister, and the numerous challenges and situations he encountered .