Biography

Working as a Junior Advocate to Ms. Nitya Ramakrishnan in New Delhi has given me a strong interest in criminal law. A large portion of the work I’ve done has involved the representation of persons charged under regressive national security and anti-terrorism statutes and the experience has thrown up several questions in my mind. For example, while policy makers quote the pragmatic justification for enhanced police power as being the fact that the effects of certain crimes are either more acute or are likely to be felt by society on a much larger scale, does the need to protect public security also provide us with a valid moral justification for the curtailment of civil liberties? At what stage or in what context does it become morally and legally permissible to dilute principles of presumption of innocence and personal liberty? I believe that it is essential for a to have some answers to these questions, and I hope to be able to find them while I pursue my LL.M.