Kallupurackal Thomas Thomas (born 30 January 1937) is an Indian former judge who served on the

Supreme Court of India The Supreme Court of India is the supreme judiciary of India, judicial authority and the supreme court, highest court of the Republic of India. It is the final Appellate court, court of appeal for all civil and criminal cases in India. It also ...

and is known for his strong opinions on Indian socio-political matters. He was awarded the

Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan (IAST: ''Padma Bhūṣaṇa'', lit. 'Lotus Decoration') is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 Januar ...

by the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

in 2007 for services in the field of social affairs.

Biography

K. T. Thomas was born in

Kottayam district Kottayam () is one of List of districts of Kerala, 14 districts in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kerala. Kottayam district comprises six municipal towns: Kottayam, Changanassery, Pala, Kerala, Pala, Erattupetta, Ettu ...

on 30 January 1937. After schooling at Baker Memorial School, he completed his Pre-University course from

CMS College Kottayam The CMS College (Church Missionary Society College), established in 1817, is one of the earliest Western-style colleges in India. The college is considered to be the oldest institution of higher education in India along with the Presidency Colle ...

and

B.A. A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree ...

at St. Albert's College, Kochi, where he served as the College Union Chairman. He studied law at

Madras Law College Dr. Ambedkar Government Law College, commonly known by its former name Madras Law College, is a law school, located in Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), ...

(now Dr. Ambedkar Government Law College, Chennai). He enrolled as an advocate in 1960 and started his career in

Kottayam Kottayam () is a city in the Kottayam district of Kerala, India. It is the district headquarters of the district and is located about north of the state capital Thiruvananthapuram. As per the 2011 Indian census, Kottayam has a population of ...

as a junior advocate to Joseph Maliakal, a leading lawyer of those days. Soon, he set up his private practice at District Court, Kottayam and later, at the

High Court of Kerala The High Court of Kerala is the highest court in the Indian state of Kerala and the Union territory of Lakshadweep. It is located in Kochi. Drawing its powers under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the High Court has the power to issu ...

. In 1977, he was directly selected as District and Sessions Judge, securing first rank in the selection tests. He was promoted as a Judge of the High Court of Kerala in 1985 and served as the Acting Chief Justice in 1995. In 1996, he was appointed as a Judge of the

. During his practice as an advocate, he led an Indian delegation to attend the World Conference on Peace held at

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, United States in 1976. He also served as chairman of one of the Commissions set up in the World Conference. Thomas retired from service in 2002 and lives at Muttambalam in Kottayam district. His autobiography, ''Honeybees of Solomon'', published in 2008, is an account of his judicial service of 25 years, which has since been published in Malayalam in the name ''Solomontae Theneechakal''. His son, Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas, who was one of the youngest to be a designated Senior Advocate of the Kerala High Court was sworn in as an Additional Judge of the Kerala High Court in March 2020.

Notable judgement

Justice Thomas presided over the

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

bench that confirmed the death sentence in the

Rajiv Gandhi Rajiv Gandhi (20 August 1944 – 21 May 1991) was an Indian statesman and pilot who served as the prime minister of India from 1984 to 1989. He took office after the Assassination of Indira Gandhi, assassination of his mother, then–prime ...

assassination case.

Political positions

Justice Thomas is very vocal in expressing his views. His recommendations on the fee structure for professional education in

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

at unaided institutions also drew opposition from the institution owners. In August 2011, he made a public speech where he exonerated

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from the assassination of

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2October 186930January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethics, political ethicist who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful Indian ...

which generated heated public debate. His opposition to the Communal and Targeted Violence bill also created a stir. He termed the Bill to be divisive and against the

constitution of India The Constitution of India is the supreme law of India, legal document of India, and the longest written national constitution in the world. The document lays down the framework that demarcates fundamental political code, structure, procedures ...

. Though Justice Thomas wrote a dissenting note on the report of the Empowered Committee regarding the maintenance of the water level at

Mullaperiyar Dam Mullaperiyar Dam () is a masonry gravity dam on the Periyar River of Idukki district of Indian state of Kerala. It is situated 150 km south east of Kochi and 200 km north east of state capital city of Trivandrum. It is located above the sea ...

, his concurrence with the report stating that the dam was safe raised criticism in his home state of

. In the

assassination case, he opined in 2013 that the three accused sentenced to death should be spared from capital punishment due to the delay of 23 years in carrying out the punishment. In March 2014, Thomas declined the offer of the

to head the selection committee of

Lokpal A Lokpal ( ''lokapāla'', "defender of people" or "People's Friend") is an anti-corruption authority or body of ombudsman who represents the public interest in the Republic of India. The current Chairperson of Lokpal is Ajay Manikrao Khanwilkar. ...

stating the "recommendations of the search committee are not binding on the selection committee. Therefore, the work of the search committee can as well be done by the selection committee itself." Another matter of public interest was his letter to the

Chief Justice of India The chief justice of India (CJI) is the chief judge of the Supreme Court of India and the highest-ranking officer of the Indian judiciary. The Constitution of India grants power to the President of India to appoint, as recommended by the outg ...

on allegations raised by Senior Advocate Dushyant Dave regarding the disposal of a 12-year-old land allotment case by a two-judge bench headed by Justice C. K. Prasad, which was actually listed before another three Judge Bench.

Awards

awarded by the

, 2007.

Positions held

* District and Sessions Judge,

– 1977 * Additional District and Sessions Judge,

Kozhikode district Kozhikode (), is one of the 14 districts in the Indian state of Kerala, along its southwestern Malabar Coast. The city of Kozhikode, also known as Calicut, is the district headquarters. The Kozhikode Municipal Corporation has a corporation l ...

– 1979 * Principal District and Sessions Judge, Kozhikode district – 1981 * Principal District and Sessions Judge,

Kollam district Kollam district (), (formerly Quilon district) is one of 14 List of districts in Kerala, districts of the state of Kerala, India. The district has a cross-section of Kerala's natural attributes; it is endowed with a long coastline, a major La ...

– 1982 * Principal District and Sessions Judge,

Thiruvananthapuram district Thiruvananthapuram District () is the List of districts of Kerala, southernmost district in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kerala. The district was created in 1949, with its headquarters in the city of Thiruvananth ...

– 1984 * Additional Justice,

– 1985 * Permanent Justice, High Court of Kerala – 1986 * Acting Chief Justice, High Court of Kerala – 1995 * Justice,

– 1996 * Chairman – Justice K. T. Thomas Committee on Unaided professional colleges – 2003 * Chairman of the Police Reforms Monitoring Committee constituted by the Supreme Court * Chairman of the School Review Commission to review the functioning of National Law School of India University, Bengaluru

Bibliography

* ''Honeybees Of Solomon - Memoirs Of A Jurist'' - Autobiography (English & Malayalam) - 2008 * ''Nyayapeetathilethummunpu'' - Malayalam - 2015 * ''Mullapperiyar Dam: Chila Velippeduthalukal'' - Malayalam - 2016 * ''Vaidyan Chikilsikkunnu Daivam Saukhyamakkunnu'' - Malayalam - 2018 *'' Kottayathinte Kadha'' - Malayalam - 2021 * ''Kuttakruthyangalude Daivasasthram'' - Malayalam - 2022 * ''Momentous Challenges in Two Decades''

References

External links

News on Padma Bhushan award

on Parliament's use of amending powers

Opinion on Death penalty

on Rajiv Gandhi assassination case

Letter to Prime Minister on Lokpal
*

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, K. T. 1937 births Living people Indian Christians Saint Thomas Christians Judges of the Kerala High Court Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in public affairs 20th-century Indian lawyers 20th-century Indian educational theorists Scientists from Kottayam 20th-century Indian judges CMS College Kottayam alumni Justices of the Supreme Court of India Assassination of Rajiv Gandhi