“The Resolute Gavel: Sir Sankaran Nair and the Ethics of Dissent”

🕊️ Thematic Focus

Category: Modern Indian History | Law & Social Reform | Jallianwala Bagh Legacy

🧷 Key Highlights

• Legacy Honoured: PM Modi commemorated Sir C. Sankaran Nair on the 106th anniversary of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, celebrating his legal and moral courage.
• Early Foundations:
  • Born 1857, Kerala; studied law at Presidency College, Madras.
  • Mentored by Sir Horatio Shepherd — future Chief Justice.
• Judicial Stature:
  • Public Prosecutor (1899), Judge, Madras High Court (1908), Knighted (1912).
  • Served in Viceroy’s Executive Council, resigned post-Jallianwala in 1919.
• Freedom & Reform:
  • Presided INC session, Amraoti (1897).
  • Advocated for constitutional reform and self-governance, opposed Gandhi’s strategies yet fought British injustice.
  • Wrote “Gandhi and Anarchy” (1922); held Michael O’Dwyer responsible for the massacre.
• The Defiant Trial:
  • Faced a defamation case in Britain for his bold stand on Jallianwala; lost but refused to apologise.
• Social Visionary:
  • Upheld inter-faith and inter-caste marriage rights, notably in Budasna v Fatima (1914).
  • Founded Madras Law Journal and Madras Review, pioneering legal discourse.

🧠 Concept Explainer

What Makes a Judge a Revolutionary?

Sir Sankaran Nair’s greatness lies not in opposing the empire with violence, but with verdicts and resignations. He wielded law as a weapon of resistance and language as a scaffold for social justice. His life exemplifies how reform is not rebellion — it is a deeper loyalty to truth.

📜 GS Paper Mapping

• GS Paper I: Modern Indian History – Freedom Struggle, Personalities
• GS Paper II: Indian Polity – Judiciary, Legal Reforms
• Essay Paper: Ethics of Dissent and Civil Courage

💭 A Thought Spark — by IAS Monk

“He rose not to shout, but to judge; not to escape history, but to inscribe it — with ink, with gavel, with courage.”