Judiciary is the pillar that holds our country tightly in its arms. We cannot even imagine India without Law and Constitution. They are inseparable, but currently, we have heard a lot about courts and law. All the news is somewhat negative, so to find the actual truth HatkeStory got connected to the famous Lawyer Saunak Rajguru.

We talked to him regarding the law, politics in courts, MOOT competitions, and various other subjects. Read “MOOT, Law and Constitution interview of Mr. Saunak Rajguru” to understand the whole picture. 

Aashna- Please introduce yourself to our readers.

Saunak Rajguru – My name is Saunak Rajguru. I am from Berhampur, a small and beautiful coastal city in Odisha. I pursued my legal studies from KIIT School of Law (KLS), Bhubaneshwar, and I am now working as an Associate in J. Sagar Associates, New Delhi.

Honestly, as a kid, I never thought I’d become a lawyer someday. I was preparing for IIT JEE and was about to pursue engineering, but I wasn’t sure about it. So, I thought I’d give law a chance. After all, the field had always fascinated me. I appeared for CLAT that year with about a months’ preparation. Considering that it was only a short preparatory period, I could not crack it.

But I realized that a career in law was my calling, and I decided to pursue it. Law School was no less than a roller coaster ride. During my studies, I did a good number of internships, participated in several debates, and did my part in winning a few Moot Court/Trial Advocacy competitions as well.

Aashna- What brought you to law? You were a Science student applying for engineering, but you chose law. How did it happen?

Saunak Rajguru – There was no specific reason but an inclination towards the subject and learning about the field. Lack of interest in Engineering did play a significant role in that shift. Political and legal subjects fascinated me more than Thermodynamics or Integrations. More importantly, I was not able to foresee myself as a successful engineer. There’s a saying that it is important to fail, for failure shows you the right path. For me, JEE Exams’ marginal results failed, which paved my way to study law. There was no looking back from there, and for sure, that’s the best decision of my life to date.

Saunak Rajguru in the Moot Court Competition

Aashna- What was the struggle you faced when you switched to Law from Science?

Saunak Rajguru – It was smooth, and there was no struggle to switch over to the law. I felt at ease while absorbing the legal subjects. The only fundamental change was that I started being up to date with current affairs, politics, daily news, policy changes, legal news, etc., and it helped a lot. 

I had reappeared for CLAT the following year but did not manage to get into a Tier-I National Law University. I accordingly decided to continue in KIIT itself, considering the nature of opportunities the college provided and the belief that the college’s background does not matter for doing well in the legal field. In law, it is only dedication towards the subject that matters the most. Besides, KLS was already providing me with everything I needed and more.

Aashna- You train students, and you organize MOOT court competitions. How do you do it? Would you please throw some light on it?

Saunak Rajguru – So, while I was in college, my friends teased me, saying Moots had become my girlfriend, and they were not wrong in saying so. I was and am still in love with mooting. Simply put, mooting is a national or international competition that helps young lawyers understanding how a court works. There are lawyers, clients, allegations, charges, and arguments.

So basically, it’s a demo of an actual courtroom where two opposite parties argue on a hypothetical legal situation to enable the students to understand an actual court scenario. For example, medical students undergo training which usually is done by simulating an actual scenario. Similarly, Law students can go to various moot court competitions if they want to. However, unlike the training given in medicine, moot courts are not compulsory for law students but are highly recommended. 

These days, I conduct Moot Court Training sessions/workshops. I have also coached several teams who have won accolades for their respective colleges in national and international mooting tournaments.

Aashna- Is not taking part in the MOOT competition a disadvantage for law students? What about those students who prioritize internships over MOOT? 

Saunak Rajguru – I wouldn’t say so. Moot court competitions are beneficial for law students, but not taking part in them doesn’t act as a detriment. It is a choice. Suppose someone is not well at Moots or is not interested. In that case, there are several other opportunities to improve their practical legal skills like writing or research papers, presenting Papers, Client Counselling Competitions, Negotiation, and Mediation Competitions, Judgment Writing Competitions, etc.

Saunak Rajguru in the 3rd National Moot Court Competition

Aashna- Please tell us more about your legal career. You have been involved in various court cases. So kindly elaborate. 

Saunak Rajguru – Currently, I am an Attorney in JSA’s Regulatory Litigation Team. Concerning my scope of work, I primarily deal with Infrastructure Laws with most matters relating to the Power Sector. We assist and represent the primary players in the Thermal and Renewable Energy Sectors. While I am not in a position to share the specific details of the matters, however, I want to share two crucial and landmark cases that I have been a part of to date: –

(a) Thermal power plants are cited as a primary source of pollution, especially in the northern capital region in India. So, MoEF had promulgated a Notification to control the emission limits of certain gases (SO2 and NOx in particular) from the thermal power plants. Considering the mandate of law, the Projects had to comply with the Notification, which necessitated the installation of equipment that would have cost more than the Plant’s cost itself.

However, no one contemplated the cost of such equipment at the stage of placing the bid or signing the contracts. We represented several power producers and succeeded in securing orders from the court, allowing the pass-through of the cost of installing such equipment by the power producers.  

(b) There was another fascinating case- It was a coal mine allocated to an entity. Still, post allocation tiger footprints were found in that area, and the mine had to be deallocated. We raised and got appropriate reliefs for the client wherein the higher cost incurred in procuring alternate coal was allowed as pass through. 

So there are so many exciting litigations we are dealing with every day. It is very unfair on my part to take the name of just a few.

Aashna- What do you think is the reason behind the judiciary disputes? What goes wrong? Cases are pending, and they go on for years. What are the reasons?

Saunak Rajguru – Yes, there are backlogs of cases, and the judiciary is trying its best to dispose of matters as soon as possible. In my view, there are two primary reasons for the backlog of cases-

1. The Government is the most prominent litigator in the country.

2. The pending judicial vacancies and governments’ lackadaisical approach towards filling up vacancies.

Aashna- On what level government interferes in judiciary matters? 

Saunak Rajguru – I have dealt with cases pro and against government several times, and not once did I feel that justice was not served or that the government was trying to influence the judges in any way, even when the government was the counterparty. It is all a balanced approach. Neither the judiciary nor the government can interfere in each other matters. In the past, whether the government wanted to overstep its jurisdictions has been appropriately struck down by the courts.

Of course, some politicians take advantage of their power and try to delay the cases but ultimately, how long can one delay the truth from coming out? Influencing decision-making is a big accusation. Since I have never witnessed any such thing or heard about it from fellow lawyers, I do not think it is true. It could be a media gimmick or just another random accusation from people who love blaming the system for no reason.

Aashna- People have this mindset that lawyers lie to win the case. Otherwise, they won’t win. How far do you think it is true? 

Saunak Rajguru – That’s just another misnomer against the Profession. We go by our papers (evidence), and papers do not lie. We are the court officers and try our best to reflect the facts the way they are.

Aashna- Has it ever happened that any lawyer involved in the case manipulated proofs and evidence?

Saunak Rajguru – As stated above, a lawyer’s moral responsibility is to be a simple assistant to the court and place all the facts and laws on the table for the judiciary to decide what is right/wrong. Somehow, a contradicting line of thought taught to most budding lawyers these days is that a lawyer has to remain loyal to its clients. I, honestly, am not in favor of it as I believe our job is to assist the clients and present their side instead of misleading the court with wrong facts.

Unlawful practices like manipulating the evidence, tutoring witnesses, etc., are pretty rampant. Still, these are unfortunate practices, and there are legal remedies to deal with such practices, which is why many lawyers have been punished for misleading courts and the judiciary.

Saunak Rajguru

Aashna- What are the difficulties a new lawyer has to face in the beginning? 

Saunak Rajguru – Location sometimes makes a difference and also the mentality of the bar. There is a general trend in many states where Senior Lawyers think they are doing some favor on their juniors by keeping and giving them work. Of course, not everyone can be weighed on the same scale. Some seniors treat juniors exceptionally well, give them the personal attention and even teach them a lot of work instead of expecting them to know it. 

As far as finances are concerned, initially, it is a concern. It does slowly get better as you start learning the work and become efficient in what you do.

Aashna- Alright, Mr. Saunak Rajguru, it was nice having a conversation with you. Thanks for connecting with us. Please give a message to our readers so they can learn something from your experience. 

Saunak Rajguru – It’s essential to identify your true calling. If you are good at something, you should follow that thing passionately. If you have a dream- no matter what it takes, whether you have done it before or not, no matter how much success rate there is, follow it with all your heart. Do everything possible to meet your goal, and there is nothing in this world that can stop you from getting success.

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