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Gautam Bhatia (lawyer)

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Gautam Bhatia is a constitutional law scholar and science fiction author from India. He is also a professor of law at the Jindal Global Law School.


Gautam Bhatia
Gautam Bhatia at a Bangalore event in January 2020
Born1988 (age 35–36)
New Delhi
NationalityIndian
Alma materNational Law School of India University, Balliol College, University of Oxford, Yale University
Occupation(s)scholar, lawyer, author
AwardsRhodes Scholarship

Early life and education

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Bhatia was born to a mathematician father and a documentary-film-maker mother; he was raised in New Delhi.[1]

He attained his BA. LL.B. from National Law School of India University in 2011,[1] and went on to pursue a B.C.L. (2012) and M.Phil. (2013) from Balliol College, University of Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar.[2][3] Subsequently, he received a LL.M. from Yale University (2014) specializing in constitutional law.[1] As of 2019, Bhatia was a doctoral scholar at University of Oxford;[4] he successfully defended his thesis in November 2021.[5]

Work

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Law

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Offend, Shock, Or Disturb: Free Speech Under the Indian Constitution

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In 2016, Offend, Shock, Or Disturb: Free Speech Under the Indian Constitution was published by Oxford University Press India. The book provides a philosophical and legal analysis of Indian free speech jurisprudence, probing into issues of liberty, autonomy, equality, and anti-subordination.[6][7][8][9] Bhatia largely agrees with the decision of the Supreme Court of India in S. Rangarajan v. Jagjivan Ram and goes on to propose a realm of 'constitutional morality' to evaluate restrictions on free speech, wherein the identity of the speaker, target, historical and cultural associations, and social situation should be taken into account to decide upon each case.[6][7][9]

Arudra Burra, a professor of philosophy at IIT Delhi, reviewing for Scroll.in, noted it to be an interesting and illuminating "must-read" despite some issues.[6] Jinee Lokaneeta, a professor of political science at Drew University, noted the work to be powerful, chilling and insightful in that it "raised important questions about colonial continuities, postcolonial choices, and the quotidian life of the law in relation to societal hierarchies"; however, it lacked in the subaltern.[7] Mark Tushnet found the monograph to have provided a clear and comprehensive account of Indian free-speech-laws, but expressed reservations against Bhatia's universalist and normative approach.[10]

A review in Economic and Political Weekly admired the work as a compelling marshaling of facts in favor of a liberal defense of free-speech-rights, while criticising Bhatia's attribution of judgements to legal theories and underemphasis on the practicalities of an over-burdened legal system and other factors.[9] Avantika Mehra, reviewing for The Hindustan Times, found the book to be a specialist work which was invaluable for research-purposes; however, she criticized Bhatia for locating his theorizing in a realpolitik vacuum and ignoring cases which challenged his analyses.[11] A review in The Hindu noted the work to be a lucid and detailed examination of the law of free speech in India and its evolution.[8]

The Transformative Constitution: A Radical Biography in Nine Acts

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In February 2019, The Transformative Constitution: A Radical Biography in Nine Acts was published by HarperCollins India . The book drew praise from critics, and was shortlisted for The Hindu Literary Prize in 2019 for the non-fiction category.[12]

Sandeep Suresh, a professor of law at Jindal Global Law School, reviewing for International Journal of Constitutional Law, commended Bhatia for adding an erudite and painstakingly researched monograph to the existing literature on Indian constitutional law.[13] In The Hindu, Mukul Kesavan, considered the book to a formidable achievement for its lucid writing, systematic argumentation and marshaling of history, political ideas and jurisprudence.[14] Nikhil Govind, a professor of philosophy at Manipal University (MAHE), noted in Scroll.in that it was a timely work that would aid in increasing legal literacy and lead to a more participative citizenship.[15][16] Shefali Jha, a professor of political science at Jawaharlal Nehru University, found the work to be a valuable contribution to the field of constitutional studies, one which advocated for contestatory democracy in place of electoral democracy.[17] Rajeev Dhavan, reviewing for The Indian Express, was admiring of Bhatia as an excellent jurist but aired pessimism about the practicalities.[18][19][20]

Others

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Bhatia has contributed chapters on "Directive Principles" to The Oxford Handbook of the Indian Constitution and "Religious Speech" to The Oxford Handbook of Freedom of Speech.[21][22][23][24] In 2021, in the wake of protests against Citizenship (Amendment) Act, Gautam Bhatia, Romila Thapar, Gautam Patel, and N. Ram coauthored a book on the multiple dimensionalities of citizenship in India.[25]

Science fiction

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The Wall

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In August 2020, The Wall —a speculative fiction novel — was published by HarperCollins to critical acclaim.[26] Set in a dystopian city called Sumer, which is guarded by impenetrable walls and has a strict hierarchical society, the novel follows the chronicles of Mithila, a queer girl (and her cohort) who seeks to venture beyond those boundaries.[26][27][28]

Avantika Mehra, reviewing for Scroll.in, noted the work to be a fine debut that mirrors neoliberal realities and touches on the themes of equality and freedom, but criticized Bhatia's over-reliance on dialogues and sketchy character-building at the cost of superb world-building.[29] However, Omair Ahmad, said in his review for The Wire, that he admired the "deeply imagined, stylish and confident debut" for its bare-bones character-development, sympathetic portrayal of the perspectives of the many groups who inhabited Sumer, and unique world-building .[30] A review in The Hindustan Times considered the novel to be an "allegorical examination of the present state of [Indian] democracy" and an important addition to the world of speculative fiction.[31] Shrabontee Bagchi, for Mint Lounge, noted The Wall to be richly layered and highly satisfying.[27] A review in Open admired Bhatia for sketching a layered narrative and raising crucial political questions in a hard-to-put-down book.[28][32]

Sequel

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A sequel to The Wall, titled The Horizon was published by HarperCollins in October 2021.[33][34][35][36]

Columns

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Bhatia is a regular columnist for multiple Indian news-media outlets.[37] His writes and edits analysis of constitutional law and the Supreme Court of India on the Indian Constitutional Law and Philosophy Blog.[38] He is also the co-ordinating editor of Strange Horizons, a weekly magazine of and about speculative fiction.[39]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Najib, Rihan (29 March 2019). "Case by case". @businessline. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  2. ^ "Rhodes scholar to Carnatic singer, meet 4 young lawyers in privacy fight". The Indian Express. 7 August 2017. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  3. ^ "Gautam Bhatia". Oxford Law Faculty. 16 July 2015. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  4. ^ "Gautam Bhatia – Forbes India Magazine". Forbes India. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  5. ^ Alan L. Bogg [@thebigbogg] (11 November 2021). "Many congratulations Dr Bhatia. A genuine pleasure reading and discussing such fabulous work. [..]" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  6. ^ a b c Burra, Arudra. "Why you must read Gautam Bhatia's 'Offend, Shock, and Disturb' to debate Free Speech in India". Scroll.in. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  7. ^ a b c Lokaneeta, Jinee (1 December 2020). "Book review: Gautam Bhatia, Offend, Shock, or Disturb: Free Speech Under the Indian Constitution, Abhinav Chandrachud, Republic of Rhetoric: Free Speech and the Constitution of India and Anushka Singh, Sedition in Liberal Democracies". Studies in Indian Politics. 8 (2): 300–303. doi:10.1177/2321023020963410. ISSN 2321-0230. S2CID 228084616.
  8. ^ a b Venkataramanan, K. (28 February 2016). "How free can free speech be?". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  9. ^ a b c "Taking Free Speech Seriously". Economic and Political Weekly. 51 (32): 7–8. 5 June 2015. Archived from the original on 7 August 2016.
  10. ^ Tushnet, Mark (2 January 2017). "Offend, shock, or disturb: free speech under the Indian constitution, Gautam Bhatia, New Delhi, Oxford University Press, 2016, 392 pp., $39.95 (hardback), ISBN 9780199460878". Indian Law Review. 1 (1): 83–86. doi:10.1080/24730580.2017.1306993. ISSN 2473-0580. S2CID 166010258.
  11. ^ "Offend, Shock, or Disturb: The limitations to free speech in India". Hindustan Times. 24 June 2016. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  12. ^ Datta, Sudipta (14 March 2020). "'The Constitution was meant to interrogate relationships of power': Gautam Bhatia". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  13. ^ Suresh, Sandeep (4 August 2020). "The Transformative Constitution: A Radical Biography in Nine Acts". International Journal of Constitutional Law. 18 (2): 668–672. doi:10.1093/icon/moaa046. ISSN 1474-2640.
  14. ^ Kesavan, Mukul (18 May 2019). "'The Transformative Constitution — A Radical Biography in Nine Acts' review: Progressive charter". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  15. ^ Govind, Nikhil. "This biography of the Indian Constitution is not about the law today but about the ideal equilibrium". Scroll.in. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  16. ^ Narrain, Siddharth (17 February 2021). "Transformative constitutionalism: a radical biography in nine acts". Indian Law Review. 5: 139–147. doi:10.1080/24730580.2021.1880722. ISSN 2473-0580. S2CID 232020841.
  17. ^ Jha, Shefali (1 June 2020). "Book review: Rohit De, A People's Constitution: The Everyday Life of Law in the Indian Republic and Gautam Bhatia, The Transformative Constitution: A Radical Biography in Nine Acts". Studies in Indian Politics. 8 (1): 118–120. doi:10.1177/2321023020918071. ISSN 2321-0230. S2CID 220321899.
  18. ^ "Morning Constitutionals". The Indian Express. 30 March 2019. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  19. ^ Hailbronner, Michaela (31 December 2020). "Indian public law scholarship roundtable: An introduction". International Journal of Constitutional Law. 18 (3): 1021. doi:10.1093/icon/moaa080. ISSN 1474-2640.
  20. ^ "The once and future Constitution | Books - UP Front News - Issue Date: May 13, 2019". India Today. 3 May 2019. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
  21. ^ Bhatia, Gautam (1 March 2016). "Directive Principles of State Policy". In Sujit Choudhry; Madhav Khosla; Pratap Bhanu Mehta (eds.). The Oxford Handbook of the Indian Constitution. doi:10.1093/law/9780198704898.001.0001. ISBN 978-0198704898. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  22. ^ Bhatia, Gautam (14 January 2021). "Religious Speech". In Adrienne Stone; Frederick Schauer (eds.). The Oxford Handbook of Freedom of Speech. Oxford Handbooks. Oxford, New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-882758-0.
  23. ^ Suarez Ibarolla, Jimena; Bhatia, Gautam. "Direct and Indirect Discrimination". In Rainer Grote; Frauke Lachenmann; Rüdiger Wolfrum; Martina Mantovani (eds.). Max Planck Encyclopedia of Comparative Constitutional Law [MPECCoL]. Managing Editor: Martina Mantovani – via Oxford Constitutions.
  24. ^ Suarez Ibarrola, Jimena; Gautam, Bhatia (2016). "Gender Discrimination". Max Planck Encyclopedia of Comparative Constitutional Law [MPECCoL]. doi:10.1093/law-mpeccol/e127.013.127. Retrieved 26 February 2021 – via Oxford Constitutions.
  25. ^ "ON CITIZENSHIP | Aleph Book Company". Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  26. ^ a b Unudurti, Jaideep (17 October 2020). "Writing on the wall: Review of Gautam Bhatia's 'The Wall'". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  27. ^ a b "Your weekend fix: Lounge recommends The Wall by Gautam Bhatia". Mint Lounge. 17 December 2020. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  28. ^ a b Bhatia, Gautam (14 January 2021). "Breaking Barriers". Open The Magazine. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  29. ^ Mehta, Avantika. "'The Wall' can be read as a continuation in fiction of Gautam Bhatia's work on freedom and equality". Scroll.in. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  30. ^ "Gautam Bhatia's Debut Novel Offers a Deeply Imagined Metaphor for Today's India". The Wire. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  31. ^ "Review: The Wall by Gautam Bhatia". Hindustan Times. 25 September 2020. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  32. ^ Hartland, Dan. "Review - The Wall by Gautam Bhatia". British Science Fiction Association. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
  33. ^ Pr, Ani (20 October 2021). "HarperCollins is proud to announce the sequel to The Wall, The Horizon by Gautam Bhatia". ThePrint. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
  34. ^ Balantrapu, Mihir (8 January 2022). "Review of Gautam Bhatia's The Horizon". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
  35. ^ "Gary K. Wolfe Reviews The Horizon by Gautam Bhatia". Locus Online. 24 January 2022. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
  36. ^ "Never Averse to Risk, Gautam Bhatia Knows the Appeal – and Dangers – of a Good Story". The Wire. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
  37. ^ "Articles by Gautam Bhatia | MSN India, The Economic Times, The Times of India Journalist | Muck Rack". muckrack.com. Retrieved 21 February 2021.
  38. ^ "Indian Constitutional Law and Philosophy". Indian Constitutional Law and philosophy. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  39. ^ "The Staff of Strange Horizons". Strange Horizons. 18 August 2024. Archived from the original on 28 September 2024. Retrieved 23 October 2024.
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