J. Sai Deepak

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Jayakumar Sai Deepak
Born
1985-11-23 (age 41)
Hyderabad, India


Occupation
Lawyer, writer, columnist



Jayakumar Sai Deepak (born 23 November 1985) is an Indian Hindutva[1] proponent, lawyer, columnist and author.[2] As a counsel, he practices before the Supreme Court of India and the High Court of Delhi.[3][4] In 2024, along with 70 other advocates, he was designated as Senior Advocate by Delhi High Court.[5]

He writes columns for The Indian Express and The Open Magazine. He has authored two books about decoloniality in relation to India: India That Is Bharat (2021) and India, Bharat and Pakistan (2022).

Early life and education

Deepak was born in Hyderabad in a Tamil Brahmin family.[6] He studied at St. Anthony's High School in Hyderabad. He then graduated in mechanical engineering from Anna University and completed law from IIT Kharagpur's Rajiv Gandhi School of Intellectual Property Law.[7]

Career

Deepak has been part of Basmati Geographical Indication litigation, as the Special Counsel for the Government of Madhya Pradesh, seeking inclusion of the state as part of the Basmati Geographical Indication.[8]

Deepak argued the case against the entry of women to Sabarimala Temple and had supported 'ready to wait' campaign. He argued against the entry, stating that the Hindu deity Ayyappan observes naishtika brahmacharya ("lifelong celibacy").[9] He was also a counsel in a petition to allow priests of any caste to be priests at Sabarimala, the priesthood at the temple has historically been open to only Malayali Brahmins.[10] The Kerala High Court ruled in favor of the traditional practices.

Deepak represented the Travancore royal family for their right to manage the estates of the Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Thiruvananthapuram.[11] The Supreme Court of India ruled in favor of the family.[12][13]

Deepak was the counsel for Anand Ranganathan in the contempt of court case against the latter for endorsing the criticism of Justice S. Muralidhar by S. Gurumurthy and Vivek Agnihotri.[14] The Delhi High Court closed the proceedings against Ranganathan.[15]

Views

Template:Conservatism in India Deepak writes two blogs, one named Yukti on constitutional theory and legal philosophy; and one named The Demanding Mistress on civil, commercial and intellectual property law. An article in the latter blog was cited by the Madras High Court in its decision on the TVS Motor Company vs. Bajaj Auto Limited intellectual property dispute.[16]

Deepak is a Hindutva activist.[1] He believes that the several good qualities of the knowledge systems of ancient Hindu civilization, mixed with the good qualities of modern education systems, can be a template for modern Indian education systems, which he considers to have multiple drawbacks.[17][18] He opposes the Dravidian movement and Periyarite thought, and claims they are Western interventions in Southern Indian societal fault lines.[19] He has written an article, where he discussed limitations imposed by the Indian Constitution against Hindu majoritarian expression. He had criticized the provisions for Hindu majority authority being subject to judicial review and being overruled if it conflicts with constitutional morality.[17]

Deepak's talk on the Uniform Civil Code in Bengaluru at a Karnataka Bar Association event was faced with opposition from a group of lawyers who wanted the event to be cancelled in an attempted case of deplatforming, but it wasn't.[20]

Deepak has participated in multiple debates, the prominent ones being with Saurabh Kirpal on same sex marriage;[21] with S. Y. Quraishi and Manish Tewari on the Uniform Civil Code;[22] with Shashi Tharoor on decoloniality;[23] and with AG Krishna Menon and Sanjay Nirupam on nationalism.[24] In 2021, during the launch of Shashi Tharoor's book ''The Battle of Belonging'', Deepak participated in a public discussion with Tharoor, distinguishing between nationalism and patriotism. Rebutting Tharoor's critiques, Deepak also argued that the common understanding of "Hindu nationalism" offers a "truncated view" of the identity. So instead, he advocated for the broader framework of 'Hindu (Dharmic) civilisationalism.' To emphasize that the Hindu civilizational identity transcends modern political boundaries and 20th-century politics, Deepak stated that he was prepared to completely discard V.D. Savarkar as its sole defining figurehead, even arguing that it is a grave injustice to the society to reduce an ancient civilization to a single individual used as a straw man.[25] Deepak is also a frequent orator, having spoken at multiple universities, as well as at literature and cultural festivals.[26]

Publications

Books

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sources about Hindutva:
    • Routledge Handbook of Contemporary India{{#if:Jacobsen|, Jacobsen}. Routledge(2023). ISBN 978-1-003-27843-6
    • Idealized Past, Exclusivist Present: Right-wing Appropriation of the Decolonial Rhetoric in Malaysia. Critical Asian Studies({Template:Date).
    • Varieties of intellectual decolonisation: an introduction. Social Dynamics({Template:Date).
  2. ↑ Islamic Liberation Theology and Decolonial Studies: The Case of Hindutva Extractivism. Religions({Template:Date).
  3. ↑ [{{{url}}} Lord Ayyappa at Sabarimala too has rights under Article 21, SC told](26 July 2018).
  4. ↑ [{{{url}}} Sabarimala case: Deity living person, has right to privacy, women devotees to SC]. Indian Express(27 July 2018).
  5. ↑ J. Sai Deepak Among 71 Advocates Designated Senior Advocate By Delhi High Court, Supreme Court Conferrs Designation On Newly Appointed ASG. Verdictum(2024-11-30). Retrieved 2024-12-03.
  6. ↑ Template:Cite AV media
  7. ↑ [{{{url}}} Small talk: The Deity's Advocate]. Mumbai Mirror(6 August 2018).
  8. ↑ The State Government Of Madhya Pradesh vs Union Of India & Ors on 25 April, 2019.
  9. ↑ Written Submissions to the Supreme Court of India in the Sabarimala Temple Entry Case(February 2019).
  10. ↑ Written Submissions in the Vishnunarayan vs State of Kerala case(22 February 2023).
  11. ↑ Written Submissions to the Supreme Court of India in the Padmanabhaswamy Temple Administration Case(April 2019).
  12. ↑ Explained: Padmanabhaswamy temple case, and what the verdict means for the Travancore royal family, Vishwanath, Apurva. The Indian Express(2020-07-13). Retrieved 2023-10-04.
  13. ↑ Sri Marthanda Varma vs State of Kerala. Supreme Court of India(13 July 2020).
  14. ↑ [{{{url}}} 'Am a free speech absolutist': Author Anand Ranganathan in contempt case](24 May 2023).
  15. ↑ Delhi High Court Closes Proceedings Against Anand Ranganathan In Criminal Contempt Case For Tweets Against Justice S Muralidhar, Thapliyal, Nupur. www.livelaw.in(2024-01-03). Retrieved 2024-02-03.
  16. ↑ M/S TVS Motor Company Limited vs M/S Bajaj Auto Limited on 18 May, 2009, Madras High Court. indiankanoon.org(18 May 2009).
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 J Sai Deepak is wrong: Indian democracy is not Hindu will, Sijoria, Siddharth. The Indian Express(28 June 2023).
  18. ↑ Isolation, conservatism and buzzwords: What drives the lucrative market for right-wing influencers, Sen, Raj Shekhar. newslaundry(24 July 2023).
  19. ↑ Sanatana Dharma and the Dravidian Movement: A response to J. Sai Deepak — 2 – The Leaflet, T. Mayura Priyan. theleaflet.in(2023-10-08). Retrieved 2024-02-12.
  20. ↑ Karnataka Bar Council Ignores Demand By Lawyers' Organisation To Cancel Sai Deepak's Talk On UCC, Event Witnesses Huge Crowd, Shukla, Suchita. www.verdictum.in(2023-09-01). Retrieved 2024-02-12.
  21. ↑ Can Parliament be trusted with LGBTQ rights? Star lawyers Sai Deepak, Saurabh Kirpal debate, Menon, Vandana. ThePrint(2023-07-20). Retrieved 2024-02-14.
  22. ↑ Debate without draft Uniform Civil Code is a non-issue, says ex-CEC S.Y. Quraishi. The Hindu(2023-08-06). Retrieved 2024-02-14.
  23. ↑ The reality of the nationalism debate, Kabilan, Kannalmozhi. The New Indian Express(2021-09-11). Retrieved 2024-02-14.
  24. ↑ Decolonising India: Is Bharat trying to reinvent itself?. India Today. Retrieved 2024-02-14.
  25. ↑ ‘Patriot dies for the country, nationalist kills for the State’. The Hindu(2021-09-10). Retrieved 2026-04-20.
  26. ↑ Those in power must be held accountable. Star of Mysore(2022-12-18). Retrieved 2024-02-14.
  27. ↑ J Sai Deepak's India that is Bharat: Coloniality, Civilisation, Constitution . Bloomsbury 2021. Social Dynamics({Template:Date).
  28. ↑ Sociology after the postcolonial: Response to Julian Go's 'thinking against empire'. The British Journal of Sociology({Template:Date).
  29. ↑ Southern turn, Northern implications: rethinking the meaning of colonial legacies for Comparative Constitutional Studies. Comparative Constitutional Studies({Template:Date).
  30. ↑ India needs to challenge colonialism in its own language. But solution isn't Hindu worldview, Yadav, Yogendra. ThePrint(2022-05-06). Retrieved 2024-03-03.
  31. ↑ How India, a victim of conflicting colonialities, is coming out of slumber to reboot its tampered mind, Kumar, Utpal. Firstpost(2022-09-06). Retrieved 2023-06-12.
  32. ↑ India needs to challenge colonialism in its own language. But solution isn't Hindu worldview, Yadav, Yogendra. ThePrint(2022-05-06). Retrieved 2023-06-12.
  33. ↑ [{{{url}}} Re-Discovering Bharat]. Star of Mysore(16 December 2022).

Further reading

  • Intellectual Decolonisation: Critical Perspectives{{#if:Sen|, Sen}. Routledge(1 August 2024). ISBN 978-1-003-51784-9

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