Remembering the heroes of our resilient Republic

How four eminent jurists nurtured and protected our constitutional values

- Gopalkrishna Gandhi

On our Republic Day, four persons, all four trained in law, come powerfully to mind — BR Ambedkar, the first law minister of independent India who is celebrated as the architect of the Constitution, Rajendra Prasad, the first President of the Republic, respected for helming it with dignity and distinction, Jawaharlal Nehru, our first Prime Minister (PM) who, in the words of another lawyer-statesman, C Rajagopalachari, commanded universal love, and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, our first deputy PM, who commanded universal trust—a combination in leadership that cannot be bettered by chance or design.

In saluting their memories on each anniversary of its founding, the Republic of India salutes the sagacity and statesmanship shown by these four, along with other founders of the nation — men and women of whom any country that believes in liberty and the rule of law would be proud.

But this column today is going to dwell not on those four phenomenal stalwarts, but four others, also from the legal community, for their role in ensuring what is essential to a country and its Constitution — its fostering, nurturing, protecting from the ill-winds of external assault and internal corrosion.