Shield and Torch: Remembering Senior Counsel Pheroze Nowrojee and the demands of Constitutional loyalty
by admin on | 2026-01-08 09:09:42 Last Updated by admin on 2026-01-09 11:14:09
Share: Facebook | Twitter | Whatsapp | Linkedin Visits: 18
Introduction
Friends, colleagues, citizens, and custodians of our Republic’s conscience.1 I thank you all for joining us today as we remember and honour our great patriot, Pheroze Nowrojee. I had expected to see Viloo Nowrojee with us, but I am glad that Binaifer Nowrojee is here. I wished, above all, that we might collectively extend to the Nowrojee family our deepest and most heartfelt condolences. This gathering itself is a testament to the breadth of love, respect, and gratitude that Pheroze inspired. I am also honoured to acknowledge the presence of my professor and mentor, Yash Pal Ghai, who, together with Pheroze Nowrojee, has co-mentored me over the years. To have been shaped by such minds is a privilege I carry with humility. Before I proceed further, I want to reflect on a defining episode from 1991, one that captures the courage and moral clarity that characterized Pheroze’s life. Pheroze was charged with contempt of court by a judge known to us as Judge Dugdale. The charge arose because Pheroze had written to the judge concerning an inordinate delay in delivering judgment. In that letter, he urged the judge to render a decision, observing that by failing to do so, the court was effectively refusing to rule. Judge Dugdale took grave offence. As a result, Pheroze was cited for contempt of court. I remember vividly the day judgment was delivered. Many of us feared that Pheroze would be imprisoned. I recall that the Honourable Martha Karua was seated beside Viloo Nowrojee as the judgment was read, a process that took almost an hour. Throughout that time, Hon Karua held Viloo’s hand. It was an extraordinary act of solidarity. In the end, Pheroze was not convicted of contempt. Those were the days of a judiciary that was still deeply compromised, including by racial segregation. Yet even then, resistance was possible, and it was people like Pheroze who insisted on principle in the face of power. May I pause here and ask, if there are members of Generation Z and Millennials here today, even those who may not have been able to participate in the demonstrations? If so, could you please stand. Thank you. That applause is for you. We honour your generation, your struggles, and your achievements in articulating political demands from within the framework of our transformative Constitution. You have breathed life into its implementation by insisting that sovereignty resides in the people of Kenya, the supreme citizens in whom all power belongs read more...
