Eminent jurist V.R. Krishna Iyer, who passed away on Thursday, held strong views on many issues relating to Tamil Nadu. Hence, he was respected by politicians and civil society.
Senior lawyer V. Prakash, who worked closely with Mr. Iyer after his retirement as Supreme Court judge, said the jurist was passionate about abolishing the death sentence. When the issue of commutation of the death sentence of the convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case was in the spotlight, he backed their mercy petitions.
“He would never hesitate to air his views on matters relating to human rights,” Mr. Prakash said.
When a city club objected to his wearing a dhoti for an event, he refused to change the attire and skipped the function, Mr. Prakash recalled.
In a statement, MDMK general secretary Vaiko said Mr. Iyer was a bitter critique of the India-Sri Lankan accord and criticised the Indian Peace Keeping Force for its excesses. Nor did he spare the former Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, for sending the Indian forces to Sri Lanka.
PMK founder S. Ramadoss said Mr. Iyer’s death caused an irreplaceable loss to the country. CPI(M) State secretary G. Ramakrishnan said Mr. Iyer could be credited with ideating public interest litigation.
