Sandy Saha at 05:28, 11 April 2026

2026-04-11T05:28:47Z

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{{Short description|Lawyer and advocate at the Supreme Court of India}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Arundhati Katju
| image =
| caption = Arundhati Katju
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=y|1982|08|19}}
| partner = [[Menaka Guruswamy]] (2018–present)
| relatives = [[Kailash Nath Katju]] (great grandfather)
| alma_mater = [[Columbia Law School]]<br />[[National Law School of India University]]
| occupation = Advocate at the [[Supreme Court of India]]
}}
'''Arundhati Katju''' (born August 19, 1982) is a lawyer qualified to practice in India and New York. She has litigated many notable cases at the Supreme Court of India and the Delhi High Court, including the [[Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India|Section 377 case]], the case of a [[trans man]] being illegally confined by his parents, the [[2013 Indian helicopter bribery scandal|Augusta Westland bribery case]], [[2G spectrum case|the 2G spectrum corruption case]] and the [[Murder of Jessica Lal|Jessica Lal murder case]]. Her law practice encompasses white-collar defence, general civil litigation, and public interest cases.

Katju obtained a B.A.LL.B. (Hons.) degree from the [[National Law School of India University|National Law School of India University, Bangalore (2005)]]. After practising at the Indian bar for 11 years, she enrolled in the LL.M. program (2017) at [[Columbia University|Columbia University, New York]], where she was a Human Rights Fellow, James Kent Scholar, and Public Interest Honoree.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.law.columbia.edu/admissions/graduate-legal-studies/profiles/arundhati-katju|title=Arundhati Katju '17 LL.M., J.S.D. Candidate}}</ref>

In the year 2019, in an interview with CNN Fareed Zakaria, Katju revealed that she was in a relationship with lawyer [[Menaka Guruswamy]], with whom she convinced the Supreme Court in 2018 to decriminalise Section 377.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.news18.com/news/buzz/section-377-lawyers-menaka-guruswamy-and-arundhati-katju-come-out-as-a-couple-2237281.html|title=Section 377 Lawyers Menaka Guruswamy and Arundhati Katju Come Out as a Couple|date=21 July 2019 }}</ref>

== Career ==

In 2016, Katju drafted the lead petition<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://orinam.net/377/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Johar-UoI-2016.pdf|title=Petition in Section 377 case, Orinam.net}}</ref> in Navtej Singh Johar and Others v. Union of India, the case that led the Indian Supreme Court to read down Section 377, the Indian [[sodomy]] law.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/sep/06/indian-supreme-court-decriminalises-homosexuality|title=Campaigners celebrate as India decriminalises homosexuality, The Guardian|website=[[TheGuardian.com]] |date=6 September 2018 }}</ref> She has also litigated other significant LGBTQ rights cases in India, including Suresh Kumar Koushal v Naz Foundation (where the Indian Supreme Court upheld the sodomy law, 2013) and Shivani Bhat v GNCT of Delhi (2015).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.livelaw.in/everyone-has-a-fundamental-right-to-be-recognized-in-their-chosen-gender-delhi-hc/|title=Everyone has a fundamental right to be recognized in their chosen Gender: Delhi HC allows transgender student to return to US|date=7 October 2015 }}</ref>

=== Decriminalization of homosexuality ===
Katju represented the lead petitioners in [[Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India|Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India (2018)]] pertaining to the decriminalization of homosexuality in India.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://barandbench.com/arundhati-katju-interview-section-377-supreme-court/|title=It's Going to Have a Huge Impact on Foreign Jurisdictions}}</ref> In a landmark judgment,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-45429664|title=India court legalises gay sex in landmark ruling|work=BBC News |date=6 September 2018 }}</ref> the 5-judge Constitutional bench of the Supreme Court<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/indias-supreme-court-decriminalizes-gay-sex-in-historic-ruling/2018/09/06/d15467b6-b111-11e8-8b53-50116768e499_story.html|title=India's Supreme Court decriminalizes gay sex in historic ruling|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] }}</ref> read down Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 as not applicable to consenting adults.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/20/opinion/editorials/india-gay-rights-supreme-court.html|title=A Win for L.G.B.T. Rights in India, New York Times|newspaper=The New York Times |date=20 September 2018 }}</ref>

=== Illegal confinement case ===
In Shivani Bhat v. National Capital Territory of Delhi & Others,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://lobis.nic.in/ddir/dhc/SID/judgement/05-10-2015/SID05102015CRLW21332015.pdf|title=Shivani Bhat v. National Capital Territory of Delhi and Others}}</ref> Katju represented Shivani Bhat, a 19-year-old trans man who was deceitfully brought from the United States to India by his parents. Katju filed a Writ Petition in the Delhi High Court on behalf of Bhat for protection from harassment and his right to return to the United States. The Delhi High Court ruled in favour of Shivani and ordered, ''inter alia,'' that Shivani's parents must return his travel documents so he could travel back to the US. The Court reaffirmed his right to [[self-determination]], travel and education.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/delhi-high-court-steps-in-to-protect-19-yr-old-transgender-from-california/|title=Delhi High Court steps in to protect 19-year-old transgender from California|date=23 September 2015 }}</ref>

=== August Westland VVIP Chopper Scam ===
In the Augusta Westland corruption case, where middlemen and Indian officials were alleged to have received kickbacks in a deal to purchase helicopters, Katju represented former Air Chief Marshal S.P. Tyagi. Tyagi was granted bail after his arrest by the Central Bureau of Investigation.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/defence/former-iaf-chief-s-p-tyagi-granted-bail-in-agustawestland-chopper-scam/articleshow/56178713.cms|title=CBI failed to state amount of money paid to former IAF Chief SP Tyagi in Agusta Westland case: court; grants him bail|newspaper=The Economic Times |last1=Gurung |first1=Shaurya Karanbir }}</ref>

== Honours ==
In 2016, Katju was awarded the Human Rights Fellowship by Columbia University, New York<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.law.columbia.edu/news/2018/09/india-supreme-court-lgbt-ruling|title=Columbia Lawyers Win Historic LGBT Rights Victory in India}}</ref> and the Women's International Leadership Program Fellowship at International House, New York. She was also awarded Columbia Law School's Herman N. Finkelstein Memorial Fellowship (2018–19). In 2018, she was a US-Italy Young Leaders Fellow. Katju was a [[TED (conference)#TEDx|TEDx]] Speaker at TEDxFerhadija’19<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ted.com/tedx/events/31178|title=TEDxFerhadija}}</ref> where she spoke about how ‘Stories can change the law’.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-KAKdpEWNo|title=Stories can change the law {{!}} Arundhati Katju {{!}} TEDxFerhadija|website=[[YouTube]] }}</ref> In April 2019, she was included on the [[Time 100|''Time'' 100]], ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]''{{'}}s list of the 100 most influential people in the world, alongside [[Menaka Guruswamy]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://time.com/collection/100-most-influential-people-2019/5567711/arundhati-katju-menaka-guruswamy/|title=Arundhati Katju and Menaka Guruswamy, Time 100}}</ref>

In June 2019, to mark the [[Stonewall 50 – WorldPride NYC 2019|50th anniversary]] of the [[Stonewall riots]], an event widely considered a watershed moment in the modern [[LGBT rights movement|LGBTQ rights movement]], ''[[Queerty]]'' named her one of the ''Pride50'' "trailblazing individuals who actively ensure society remains moving towards [[LGBT equality|equality]], acceptance and dignity for all [[queer]] people".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.queerty.com/pride50|title=Queerty Pride50 2019 Honorees|website=Queerty|language=en-US|access-date=2019-06-18}}</ref>

== Publications ==
{| class="wikitable"
|+
!Year
!Title of Editorial
!Newspaper/Publisher
|-
|2019
|Guilty Till Proved Innocent<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/pocso-act-protection-of-children-from-sexual-offences-act-5520685/|title=Guilty Till Proved Innocent|date=3 January 2019 }}</ref>
|Indian Express
|-
|2018
|The gap in disaster management funding<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.livemint.com/Opinion/pKD1VKn5nxntI88ZB7KGxK/The-gap-in-disaster-management-funding.html|title=Opinion {{!}} The gap in disaster management funding|date=5 September 2018 }}</ref>
|Mint
|-
|2018
|Opinion: 377 verdict is a new dawn not just for LGBTQ rights but for individual liberties in India<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://scroll.in/article/893472/opinion-377-verdict-is-a-new-dawn-not-just-for-lgbt-rights-but-for-individual-liberties-in-india|title=Opinion: 377 verdict is a new dawn not just for LGBT rights but for individual liberties in India}}</ref>
|Scroll.in
|-
|2018
|Rights Over Wrong<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/rights-over-wrong-section-377-homosexuality-5345713/|title=Right Over Wrong|date=8 September 2018 }}</ref>
|Indian Express
|-
|2018
|LGBTQ rights in India: The Doctrine of Constitutional Morality and Counter-Majoritarianism in the Context of Institutional Supremacy<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://constitutionnet.org/news/lgbt-rights-india-doctrine-constitutional-morality-and-counter-majoritarianism-context|title=LGBT rights in India: The Doctrine of Constitutional Morality and Counter-Majoritarianism in the Context of Institutional Supremacy}}</ref>
|ConstitutionNet
|-
|2018
|As US courts turn purist, SC is liberal mascot<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/as-us-courts-turn-purist-sc-is-liberal-mascot/articleshow/65713435.cms|title=As US Court turns purist, SC is liberal mascot|website=[[The Times of India]] }}</ref>
|The Times Of India
|-
|2018
|Triple Talaq: Personal Law and Colonial Shadows in Contemporary India<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://constitutionnet.org/news/triple-talaq-personal-law-and-colonial-shadows-contemporary-india|title=Triple Talaq: Personal Law and Colonial Shadows in Contemporary India}}</ref>
|ConstitutionNet
|-
|2017
|Reading Inwards from the Margins: Indic Classical Thought in Nietzsche and Foucault<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://blogs.law.columbia.edu/nietzsche1313/arundhati-katju-reading-inwards-from-the-margins-indic-classical-thought-in-nietzsche-and-foucault/|title=ARUNDHATI KATJU {{!}} READING INWARDS FROM THE MARGINS: INDIC CLASSICAL THOUGHT IN NIETZSCHE AND FOUCAULT}}</ref>
|Nietzsche
|-
|2017
|Meditations on Breath and Sexual Difference<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://blogs.law.columbia.edu/nietzsche1313/arundhati-katju-meditations-on-breath-and-sexual-difference/|title=Meditations on Breath and Sexual Difference}}</ref>
|Nietzsche
|-
|2013
|Let's call it hate speech<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/let-s-call-it-hate-speech/1056421/|title=Let's Call It Hate Speech}}</ref>
|The Indian Express
|}

== References ==
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Katju, Arundhati}}
[[Category:1982 births]]
[[Category:Columbia Law School alumni]]
[[Category:21st-century Indian lawyers]]
[[Category:Indian lesbians]]
[[Category:Indian LGBTQ lawyers]]
[[Category:21st-century Indian women lawyers]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:21st-century Indian LGBTQ people]]

Arundhati Katju - Revision history

Sandy Saha at 05:28, 11 April 2026