Part of the Law in India series, this study presents biographies of 93 judges of the Supreme Court of India who served the Court from its inception in 1950 to 1989. The essays are based on the author's interviews with 68 judges. The author travelled extensively for fieldwork for this study between 1983 and 1988. For the deceased judges, the author met and interviewed their widows and children along with their close friends and relatives. The essays embrace the entire
lives of these judges and a complete list of each judge's publications, including the official reports prepared by him. The work examines the criteria for selection of judges, its political context, and the relationship between the Chief Justice of India and the executive. Analysing the
socio-economic background of the judges with respect to factors such as father's occupation, caste, economic status, religion, education, professional career, participation in politics, age, tenure, etc., this is a detailed study of the judges who served the court for a period of around forty years. This first-of-its-kind book provides a hands-on account of the first forty years of the Supreme Court of India.