Great Judges of India

1833–1874

Justice Dwarkanath Mitter

A liberal voice on the Calcutta Bench

Appointed to the Calcutta High Court in 1867, Dwarkanath Mitter was admired for his learning and independence. As a lawyer in the Great Rent Case (1865) he successfully defended the rights of tenants against zamindars before the full bench of the High Court.

1832–1895

Justice T. Muthuswamy Iyer

The first Indian judge of the Madras High Court

Rising from a poor family through the subordinate judiciary, T. Muthuswamy Iyer became the first Indian judge of the Madras High Court in 1878 and later its officiating Chief Justice. His statue stands in the High Court premises.

• First Indian judge of the Madras High Court (1878).

1850–1903

Justice Syed Mahmood

The first Indian judge of the Allahabad High Court

The son of Sir Syed Ahmad Khan and a barrister of Lincoln's Inn, Syed Mahmood became the first Indian judge of the Allahabad High Court in 1882. His judgments, especially his dissents on criminal procedure and the right to counsel, were admired for their scholarship.

• First Indian judge of the Allahabad High Court (1882).
• Son of Sir Syed Ahmad Khan.

1842–1901

Justice Mahadev Govind Ranade

Judge and social reformer

Ranade was a judge of the Bombay High Court (from 1893), an economist and a leading social reformer who campaigned for widow remarriage and against child marriage. He was a founder of the Prarthana Samaj and the Poona Sarvajanik Sabha, and a mentor to Gopal Krishna Gokhale.

• Judge of the Bombay High Court from 1893.
• Mentor of Gokhale.

1864–1924

Sir Ashutosh Mukherjee

The "Bengal Tiger"

A judge of the Calcutta High Court (1904–1923) and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Calcutta for several terms, Ashutosh Mukherjee transformed the university into a centre of postgraduate teaching and research. He was the father of Syama Prasad Mookerjee.

• Father of Syama Prasad Mookerjee.