Former Supreme Court judge B Sudershan Reddy, picked by the opposition INDIA alliance as its vice-presidential candidate, had a remarkable journey from a humble background in Telangana to reach the top echelons of judiciary and is widely known for his professional integrity and commitment to social justice cause.
The defining moment in his career as the Supreme Court judge came in 2011 when he delivered the landmark judgement banning the Salwa Judum militia in Chhattisgarh. Becomes the first former Supreme Court judge to contest an election for the post of Vice-President.
In the celebrated Nandini Sundar versus State of Chhattisgarh case, the top court directed that the practice of using tribal youth as Special Police Officers to counter the Naxal insurgency be brought to an end.
Also read: Ex-SC judge Sudershan Reddy named INDIA Bloc VP candidate
“We, the people as a nation, constituted ourselves as a sovereign democratic republic to conduct our affairs within the four corners of the Constitution, its goals and values. We expect the benefits of democratic participation to flow to us — all of us — so that we can take our rightful place in the league of nations, befitting our heritage and collective genius. Consequently, we must also bear the discipline and the rigour of constitutionalism, the essence of which is accountability of power, whereby the power of the people vested in any organ of the State, and its agents, can only be used for promotion of constitutional values and vision,” he wrote in the landmark ruling.
The Salwa Judum, which was accused of human rights abuses, was a state-sponsored militia raised in 2005 to counter Maoist insurgency. It comprised largely tribal youth armed with basic training and firearms.
Born into an agricultural family on July 8, 1946, in Telangana’s Ranga Reddy, he graduated in law from Osmania University in Hyderabad in 1971 and started practising in the Hyderabad civil courts.
Justice (retd) Reddy was named the government pleader in August 1988 in the Andhra Pradesh high court and argued the revenue department cases. He continued in the post until January 1990.
He was appointed as an additional standing counsel for the central government and elected as Andhra Pradesh High Court Advocates’ Association president in 1993.
Elevated as an additional high court judge in May 1995, he was appointed as the Gauhati high court Chief Justice in December 2005. He was elevated as a Supreme Court judge in January 2007 and retired in July 2011. Justice (retd) Reddy was appointed Goa’s first Lokayukta in March 2013. He resigned from the post on personal grounds in October 2013.
A supporter of the separate Telangana state, Justice Reddy also supported the bifurcation of the combined Andhra Pradesh high court.
Follow us
