Freedom of the Press and its Constraints in Emerging Democracies
Rajeev Dhavan is a Senior Counsel practicing in the Supreme Court of India and currently Chairperson of the Executive Committee of the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ). He is an Honorary Professor of the Indian Law Institute and the Director of the Public Interest Legal Support and Research Centre (PILSARC).
Dr. Dhavan has been involved in many major cases including the closure of mines in the Sariska Tiger Reserve, the Rathong Chu and Tehri Dam cases; the Babri Masjid cases; various cases concerning sanctuaries including the Nagarhole, Narayan Sarovar and Penet sanctuaries; the Mandal cases and most of the reservation cases that followed. He has been amicus to the court in many matters including currently in the NOIDA Land case, the AIIMS strike case and the criminal fallout of the Gujjar demonstration.
He was educated at Allahabad, Cambridge and London Universities. As a former academic, he taught at Queen’s University (Belfast, Ireland), the University of West London, with visiting and other assignments at the University of Texas at Austin, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and the University of Delhi. He is the author of many books and articles on constitutional law, policy and public affairs and called to the Bar in India and England.