Died March 16, 1963 Preceded by H. J. Kania Spouse M. Kamakshi Ammal | Name M. Sastri Role Justice | |
 | ||
Born January 4, 1889Mandakolathur, Madras Presidency(present day Tiruvannamalai district, Tamil Nadu) ( 1889-01-04 ) | ||
Justice Patanjali Sastri - 2nd Chief Justice of India
Mandakolathur Patanjali Sastri (January 4, 1889 - March 16, 1963) was the second Chief Justice of India, serving in the post from 7 November 1951 to 3 January 1954.
He was the son of Pandit Krishna Sastri, senior Sanskrit pandit of Pachaiyappa's College, Madras. He graduated in B.A. from Madras University in around 1910 before taking an LL.B in 1912 and becoming an advocate. He began his career as an advocate in the Madras High Court in 1914 and practised for some time, gaining repute as having special expertise in tax law, particularly with Chettiar clients. In 1922, he was appointed standing counsel to the Commissioner of Income Tax in recognition of his abilities in this field; he held the position until his elevation to the Bench on March 15, 1939. He replaced his close friend Sir Srinivasa Varadachariar, who had been appointed to the Federal Court of India.
On December 6, 1947, by then third in seniority on the Madras High Court, he was made a judge of the Federal Court, which subsequently became the Supreme Court. Following the unexpected death of the Chief Justice, Sir Harilal Kania, on 6 November 1951, Sastri, as the senior-most associate justice, was appointed to replace Kania as Chief Justice. Sastri served as Chief Justice of India till he reached retirement age on 4 January 1954.
Previously appointed pro-chancellor of Delhi University in 1953, he served in that capacity until 1956. In retirement, Sastri remained active with the Delhi branch of the International Law Association and headed the Airlines Compensation Commission which oversaw the nationalisation of India's airlines. He also served as a member of the board of directors of the Press Trust of India and served on the Madras Legislative Council from July 1958 to April 1962. An eminent Sanskrit scholar and active member of the executive council of Benares Hindu University at the time of his death on March 16, 1963, he had chaired the Central Sanskrit Board since 1959, as well as the Kendriya Sanskrit Vidya Pith at Tirupati. His great grandson is Avanidhar Subrahmanyam, a Distinguished Professor at the University of California, Los Angeles.