Abstract: This is the second talk of the ‘Institute Lecture Series on the Indian Constitution’. In this talk, looking at the Indian Constitution in a comparative perspective, Mr Chinoy will address a range
of questions. ‘What is the Constitution’? What does it mean when we subordinate all organs of the state to Constitutional dominance? The constitution is not just law; it is a document embodying societal choices between conflicting needs, options and demands. How was the Constitution framed? What is its content and how can we analyze it as a political document balancing the rights and responsibilities of different sections? At the same time, the talk also examines the fact that Constitutions are not fixed and immutable; they evolve over time and the courts and the
judiciary in India and elsewhere have played a role in the process of interpreting the Constitution to address the changing needs of the time.

Bio-Note:

Mr Aspi Chinoy is one of the senior-most advocates of the Bombay High Court and is considered one of the country’s finest lawyers, highly respected by his peers in the legal fraternity as well as by the
judiciary. After studies at St Xavier’s College and Government Law College in Mumbai, Mr Chinoy began practicing law at the Bombay High Court. He is especially noted for his expertise on Constitutional and Commercial cases as well as Public Interest Litigation. As Senior Counsel, today Mr Chinoy appears in cases at the Bombay High Court, the Supreme Court of India as well as in other High Courts.

There are several high profile cases among those in which Mr Chinoy has appeared as Counsel such as the Reliance – L & T take-over case; Dwarkadas Marfatia’s case relating to the applicability of constitutional limitations on the role of the State/ Public Authority as a Landlord; Holding Political parties accountable / liable for public losses caused by calling & enforcing “Bandhs” (2004) and the recent well-known Vodafone taxation case.