BookMann Kolkata' is the largest bookstore for law books in Kolkata, India. The bookstore was formed in 1991 by the Maheshwari family, which also owns the Book Corporation.
Bookmann is located outside the Calcutta High Court. Unlike any other bookstore in Kolkata, Bookmann encourages the store premises to be a centre of debate and discussion. The concept has been taken from old coffee houses in Calcutta.
Despite thousands of district courts, 24 high courts, and one apex court with close to 30 judges, India struggles with 2.7 million core pending cases, consuming an estimated 14 years per case if the same number of judges continue to work on these cases. This generates a need for legal professionals and judges to expedite the process.
According to the World Bank, “although India’s courts are notoriously inefficient, they at least comprise a functioning independent judiciary”.
In 2011 there were 1.3 million lawyers in India, revealed a right to information (RTI) response by the Bar Council of India (BCI) to Delhi-based advocate Kush Kalra, with an average annual growth rate between 2007 and 2011 of around 4 per cent. Online statistics are available.
Bookmann's publications include West Bengal local acts like West Bengal thika tenancy, land reforms, wetland manual, housing and municipality laws. Besides serving the judiciary, Bookmann also runs a society to sponsor rational and scientific thoughts and beliefs in the orthodox Hindu system.
Besides Bookmann, a number of other bookstores thrive in the area. Founded in 1991, the company has seen a generation of law students turn into successful lawyers and barristers specializing in topics of diverse interest. Bookmann has ventured into software for lawyers which enables them to find relevant material from court judgements. Regular patrons include barristers such as S.K. Kapoor and criminal experts including Milan Mukherjee.
Bookmann has active partnerships with law schools in India including NUJS and Hazra Law college. The company is associated with the Alliance Clubs International, whose motto is secular, social and nationalist. The store is managed by Vaibhav Maheshwari, who is an alumnus of IIT Kharagpur and IIM Indore.