“Old soldiers never die, they only fade away. Grand Old Men only die. But they never fade away”
Fali S. Nariman
Positions Held and Books Written
Motilal Chimanlal Setalvad, India’s first and longest-serving Attorney General. My Life Law and Other Things is an autobiography on the legal luminary. He assumed the charge of the Attorney General of India when the post was created through the Constitution of India, which came into effect on 26th January 1950. His tenure was from 1950-1963. He was also the Chairman of the First Law Commission from 1955-58 and also First Chairman of Bar Council of India. He also wrote “Common Law in India”
Awards & Honours
He was awarded the Padma Vibhushan, India’s second-highest civilian honour by Government of India in 1957 for the public affairs.
Initial Years
The son of noted lawyer Sir Chimanlal Harilal Setalvad, M. C. Setalvad was brought up in Bombay. He studied at Government Law College, Mumbai.
He started practising law in Bombay and eventually became Advocate General of Bombay and Attorney General for India in 1950, in the formative years of Government of India, under Jawaharlal Nehru.
He appeared for the government in a host of important and, at times, controversial cases. He was also involved with the Radcliffe Tribunal for demarcation of the India-Pakistan border and several UN proceedings on Kashmir.
Inaugural proceedings of Supreme Court of India was attended by then-Attorney General of India, M. C Setalvad.
Practice Attributes
A few characteristic qualities of Setalvad as an Advocate need a mention. He was blessed with a stentorian voice which was quite disarming for his opponents. He was invariably full of confidence at the Bar and had the habit of looking around in court during the course of his arguments. He never interrupted his opponents. His arguments were crisp and to the point and were not loaded with personal reminiscences and anecdotes. He practised the profession in a grand manner like an architect and not like a mason or a tradesman operating on the law of demand and supply. His fees were reasonable and did not vary depending upon the stakes involved in a case. The most conspicuous trait of Motilal Setalvad’s advocacy in Court was his clarity of exposition and brevity. He never repeated an argument or over emphasized it. He had the most impeccable demeanour in court. He did not raise his voice or show any emotion or indulge in levity. No other Attorney General had the gravity which he had and which spontaneously commanded respect from the Bench. As a Law Officer, he seemed to have instinctively grasped the true function of a Law Officer which is stressed in English Courts viz., “Counsel for the Crown neither wins or loses. He is there to state the law and facts to the Court”. Setalvad did precisely that.
Quotes from his Book
M.C. Setalvad, in his autobiography, Story of My Life (1970) has recorded that since the Indian system is modelled on the Westminster parliamentary democracy, his study of the British constitutional conventions and case law established that the position of the Indian president was no different from that of the British monarch. Both must act according to the advice of the council of ministers “except in the extremely rare situation when the council might not exist”. He also refused to accept President Prasad’s argument that the provisional Parliament, elected on a restricted franchise, had no right to make “such revolutionary changes” as the Hindu Code Bill did. Setalvad asserted that the provisional Parliament was a “continuation of the constituent assembly that had enacted the entire Constitution”. Another eminent jurist, Alladi Krishnaswami Aiyar, was of exactly the same view. And some years later the Supreme Court broadly endorsed their position.
Quotes About M.C Setalvad
MC Chagla in his autobiography ‘Roses in December‘ writes,
‘No one has contributed more to the elucidation of our Constitutional law than he. But for his advocacy and his assistance in the interpretation of the Constitution, I do not think the Supreme Court could have delivered some of the great judgements that now stand to its credit. (page 58)
…
It was India’s good fortune that she had services of a person of Setalvad”s ability at her disposal. The fact that in earlier years, the Supreme Court succeeded in laying down the law with acumen and sagacity was due not only to the knowledge of judges but also to a very large extent to the expert assistance that they received from Setalvad as Attorney General. He can with justice claim that he played a big role in the evolution of our constitutional law.’ (page 162)
‘Mr. Setalvad who appeared for the Judges of the Allahabad High Court addressed to us a very able argument with his characteristic brevity and lucidity.’ (page 435)
Chagla in his autobiography writes,
‘Setalvad’s style of advocacy … was brief, precise, to the point and paid compliment to the bench by never repeating himself.’ (page 162)
Death
He died in 1974 at Mumbai.
