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{{Short description|Indian lawyer}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2018}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name                = Keshava Parasaran
| image               = 
| alt                 = 
| caption             = 
| birth_date          = {{Birth date and age|df=y|1927|10|09}}
| birth_place         = [[Srirangam]],  [[Tamil Nadu]], India
| nationality         = [[India|Indian]]
| occupation          = {{hlist|[[Lawyer]]/[[Advocate]]|}}
| years_active        = 
| parents             = [[R. Kesava Aiyangar]] (father)
| children            = 5, including [[Mohan Parasaran]]
| spouse              = {{marriage|Shrimati Saroja Parasaran|11 July 1949|reason=}}
| education           = B.A. (Economics), [[ Presidency College, Chennai]] <br> B.L., Law College, Madras
| office              = [[Member of Parliament|MP]] of [[Rajya Sabha]] (Nominated)
| term_start          = 29 June 2012
| term_end            = 28 June 2018
| office1             = [[Attorney General for India]]
| term_start1         = 9 August 1983
| term_end1           = 8 December 1989
| predecessor1        = [[L.N. Sinha]]
| successor1          = [[Soli Sorabjee]]
| primeminister1      = [[Indira Gandhi]] <br> [[Rajiv Gandhi]]
| office2             = [[Solicitor General of India]]
| term_start2         = 6 March 1980
| term_end2           = 8 August 1983
| primeminister2      = [[Indira Gandhi]]
| predecessor2        = [[Soli Sorabjee]]
| successor2          = [[Milon K. Banerji]]
| office3             = [[Advocate General]] of [[Tamil Nadu]]
| term_start3         = 1976
| term_end3           = 1977
| predecessor3        = [[Govind Swaminadhan]]
| successor3          = [[V. P. Raman]]
| awards              = [[Padma Bhushan]](2003), [[Padma Vibhushan]](2011)
}}

'''Keshava Parasaran''' (born 9 October 1927) is a lawyer from India. He was [[Advocate general (India)|Advocate General]] of Tamil Nadu during the president's rule in 1976, [[Solicitor General of India]] under the then [[Prime Minister of India| Prime Minister]] [[Indira Gandhi]], and [[Attorney General of India]] under Prime Ministers [[Indira Gandhi]] and [[Rajiv Gandhi]] between 1983 and 1989 until the end of Rajiv's tenure. Parasaran was awarded the [[Padma Bhushan]] in the year 2003 and [[Padma Vibhushan]] in the year 2011. In June 2012, he received a presidential nomination to the [[Rajya Sabha]], the upper house of India's parliament, for a period of six years.<ref name=":0"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.news18.com/news/india/at-93-k-parasaran-has-lord-ram-memory-by-his-side-as-he-fights-the-hindus-case-in-ayodhya-title-suit-2349539.html|title=Meet K Parasaran, the 93-year-old Advocate For Hindus Whose Spiritual Connect With Ram Kept Him Going|website=News18|access-date=2019-11-09}}</ref> He is a member of [[Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra]]. In 2019 the Central Government appointed him to lead the [[Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra]]. However later, [[Nritya Gopal Das|Mahant Nritya Gopal Das]] was appointed to lead the trust. The trust oversaw the construction of the Ram Temple in [[Ayodhya]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/mha-notifies-ram-temple-trust/article30744476.ece|title=Ministry of Home Affairs notifies temple trust; RSS, VHP members kept out|date=2020-02-05|work=The Hindu|access-date=2020-02-06|language=en-IN|issn=0971-751X}}</ref>

== Early life and education ==
Born in the [[Srirangam]] district of [[Tamil Nadu]], Parasaran is the son of Kesava Iyengar, a lawyer, and Shrimati Ranganayaki. While pursuing his BL (now, BA. LLB), he was awarded the Shri Justice C.V. Kumaraswami Sastri Sanskrit Medal and Justice Shri V. Bhashyam Iyengar Gold Medal in Hindu Law. During the Bar Council examination, he received the Justice Shri K.S. Krishnaswamy Iyengar Medal.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://theprint.in/india/governance/judiciary/parasaran-pitamah-indian-lawyers-got-wish-when-ayodhya-hearings-ended/307421/|title=Parasaran, the 'pitamah' of Indian lawyers got his wish when Ayodhya hearings ended|last=Roy|first=Debayan|date=2019-10-18|website=ThePrint|language=en-US|access-date=2019-11-09}}</ref>

== Career ==
Parasaran began his legal practice before the Supreme Court in 1958. He defended the [[National Judicial Appointments Commission]] in 2014, as a member of the Rajya Sabha. In a career spanning over six decades, Parasaran is known for his contribution in the following cases:

=== Sabarimala case ===
In the [[Entry of women to Sabarimala|Sabarimala case]], Parasaran defended the [[Nair Service Society]] by arguing that the ban restricting the entry of menstruating women in the [[Sabarimala|Sabarimala Temple]] is right. He recited paragraphs from the Ramayana to explain the concept of ''Naishtika Brahmacharya'', that is, the celibate nature of the deity [[Ayyappan]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/at-92-key-face-in-ayodhya-case-is-a-trusted-voice-of-many-govts-5897273/|title=At 92, key face in Ayodhya case K Parasaran is a trusted voice of many governments|date=2019-08-12|website=The Indian Express|language=en-IN|access-date=2019-11-09}}</ref>

=== Ayodhya land dispute case ===
Parasaran successfully fought the [[Ayodhya dispute|Ayodhya land dispute case]] for the Hindu parties.<ref name="inex20">{{cite news|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/who-is/who-is-k-parasaran-6253573/|work=The Indian Express|date=6 February 2020|author=Express Web Desk|title=Who is K Parasaran?}}</ref><ref name="printin19">{{cite news|url=https://theprint.in/judiciary/parasaran-pitamah-indian-lawyers-got-wish-when-ayodhya-hearings-ended/307421/|title=Parasaran, the 'pitamah' of Indian lawyers got his wish when Ayodhya hearings ended|date=18 October 2019|work=The Print|last=Roy|first=Debayan}}</ref> Furthermore, he has been named as a trustee in the [[Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra]].<ref name="inex20" /> He was described as "Pitamah of the [[Bar_Council_of_India|Indian Bar]]" by [[Sanjay Kishan Kaul]] for his contribution.<ref name="printin19" />

== Personal life ==
In 1949, Parasaran married Saroja, and has three sons, [[Mohan Parasaran]], who was [[Solicitor General of India]] during the [[Indian National Congress|Congress]] led [[United Progressive Alliance|UPA 2]] Government, Balaji Parasaran, and Satish Parasaran and two daughters.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" />

== Award ==
* [[Padma Bhushan]] (2003)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.businesstoday.in/pti-feed/k-parasaran-pitamaha-of-india-bar-emerges-hero-in-ayodhya-land-dispute-case/story/389627.html|title=K Parasaran, 'Pitamaha' of India Bar, emerges hero in Ayodhya land dispute case|website=www.businesstoday.in|access-date=2019-11-24}}</ref>
* [[Padma Vibhushan]] (2011)<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/Parasaran-Vittal-Natarajan-among-Padma-awardees/article15533119.ece|title=Parasaran, Vittal, Natarajan among Padma awardees|date=2011-01-26|work=The Hindu|access-date=2019-11-24|language=en-IN|issn=0971-751X}}</ref>
* Most Eminent Senior Citizen (2019)<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://ddnews.gov.in/national/m-venkaiah-naidu-presents-most-eminent-senior-citizen-award-k-parasaran|title=M Venkaiah Naidu presents Most Eminent Senior Citizen Award to K Parasaran {{!}} DD News|website=ddnews.gov.in|access-date=2019-11-24}}</ref>
* Shri Narayan Guru award (Swarajya award) (2020)

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Padma Vibhushan Awards}}
{{PadmaBhushanAwardRecipients 2000–09}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Parasaran, K.}}
[[Category:1927 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian lawyers]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Padma Vibhushan in public affairs]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in public affairs]]
[[Category:Attorneys general of India]]
[[Category:Senior advocates in India]]
[[Category:Nominated members of the Rajya Sabha]]
[[Category:Ayodhya dispute]]