Former VP Ansari recalls AG Noorani’s “one-man institution”.

Former Vice President M. Hamid Ansari | Photo credit: SHASHI SHEKHAR KASHYAP

Renowned columnist and legal expert AG Noorani was remembered at a memorial lecture at the Indian Islamic Cultural Center in New Delhi on Friday (September 19, 2026), where former Vice President M. Hamid Ansari described the former The Hind and Frontline columnist as a “polymath” and a “one-man institution”.

Calling Mr Noorani one of the sharpest minds in constitutional law, Mr Ansari said he had his own distinctive way of working. Although he was not a local reporter, Mr. Noorani understood the pulse of the nation, he said. Noorani Records, a publication of The Hindu Group featuring some of the late columnist’s best writings, was also launched by Mr. Ansari in the presence of former Union Minister Salman Khurshid. Mr. Noorani has written for The Hindu and Frontline for nearly four decades.

In his speech titled ‘Remembering a Polymath: Life and Times of Abdul Ghafoor Noorani’, Mr Ansari said Mr Noorani’s life and work reflected unwavering commitment to justice, civil liberties, minority rights, secularism and constitutional governance.

Recalling the various aspects of Mr. Noorani’s personality, Mr. Ansari said that he was highly respected among lawyers in the Bombay High Court and the Supreme Court. Mr Noorani has written with “rare insight” on issues ranging from the Constitutional Amendments and Protection Act of more than 30 years ago to the more recent Citizenship (Amendment) Act. He also wrote about the “troughs and ridges” of Kashmir.

Born in erstwhile Mumbai in the Kutchi Memon community, Mr. Noorani kept his privacy and was not known to socialize easily. He spent his time reading and writing. After his death, his vast collection of books was sent to the Jharkhand High Court Library after a section of lawyers opposed the proposal to keep the books in the Bombay High Court.

“He was a polymath and much more,” Mr. Ansari said, adding, “His writings covered domestic politics, jurisprudence, international relations and history, often combining legal, political and historical perspectives.”

Mr. Ansari focused much of his speech on Mr. Noorani’s contribution to the defense of human rights and constitutional freedoms. He described him as a fierce defender of civil liberties, minority rights and constitutional governance, especially at a time when state power and legislation posed serious questions for individual liberties.

Mr Noorani’s writings have repeatedly explored state overreach, secularism and religious equality. Mr Ansari said his approach was rooted in the defense of fundamental freedoms and opposition to oppressive legislation and injustice.

Mr. Noorani’s early works included his biography of then President Dr. Zakir Husain in 1963. The book included a foreword by Jayaprakash Narayan who praised Husain’s “active, creative, refined, devoted, fearless and truthful” life. Mr. Ansari also recalled that a reproduction of Mr. Noorani’s portrait by painter MF Husain appeared in the volume.

Mr. Noorani’s interest in justice was also reflected in The Trial of Bhagat Singh: Politics of Justice, in which he argued that Bhagat Singh and his colleague were victims of a miscarriage of justice amounting to judicial murder.

His scholarship was not limited to Indian constitutional and political issues. His study of the India-China border dispute, covering the years 1846 to 1947, explored the historical origins of one of India’s major foreign policy challenges. Mr Ansari described his solution to the dispute as a combination of history, law, morality and political expediency.

Those present included former Union ministers Salman Khurshid and Mani Shankar Aiyar, besides diplomats, bureaucrats and authors.

Published – 19 Sep 2026 21:47 IST