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Former Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Congress MP Shashi Tharoor discussed their books on the Indian Constitution at the 16th Tata Literature Live! The Mumbai LitFest. In a session titled “Equality, Fraternity, Justice,” they explored the Constitution as a living document, its evolving morality, gender and queer rights.
Dr DY Chandrachud and Tharoor launch books on the Indian Constitution at Mumbai LitFest
Mumbai: At the 16th edition of Literature Live! The Mumbai LitFest, former Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Congress MP Shashi Tharoor came together to talk about their books on the Indian Constitution. The session, titled “Equality, Fraternity, Justice,” was presented by Blue Star and featured the launch of their new books, Chandrachud’s “Why the Constitution Matters” and Tharoor’s “Our Living Constitution: A Concise Introduction and Commentary.”
Dr DY Chandrachud explained that his book was born from a desire to explain the Constitution to ordinary citizens. “When you write the judgement, it constrains the range of ideas you can cover. And I thought I should develop some ideas which were spoken about. I wanted to tell the people what the Constitution does for them in simple terms and debunk some myths.”
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He described the Constitution as a “living document” that continues to evolve with the country. “Certain concepts in the Constitution have evolved with how India has evolved over the years. It is a living document, and not frozen at the date of its birth. There is so much of the Constitution that is work-in-progress with the citizens. Our Constitution speaks in different languages to different people and that’s the beauty of it,” he added.
Shashi Tharoor discussed the idea of constitutional morality, a concept introduced by Dr BR Ambedkar. “It’s not enough to have the Constitution,” Tharoor said, "Constitutional morality is less likely to come out in our legislation because legislators tend to be too dependent on the dislikes and prejudices of their electorate as they will be facing them tomorrow."
50th CJI DY Chandrachud, Tharoor discuss India’s evolving Constitution
Tharoor noted that politicians often find it harder to uphold constitutional morality because they must answer to their voters, while judges interpret the law more freely. “Constitutional morality grows through the spirit of judicial interpretation.”
Both speakers discussed key issues such as gender equality, queer rights, and social justice. Chandrachud reflected on important judgments like the decriminalisation of adultery and Section 377, saying they gave citizens, especially women and LGBTQ+ people - new freedoms and dignity. He also asked how India could continue to build a stronger culture of constitutional morality that goes beyond popular opinion.
Justice DY Chandrachud also spoke about how artificial intelligence (AI) is being used in the judiciary. He said AI tools have already helped translate about 33,000 court judgments into India’s 22 recognised languages. However, he stressed that technology can only assist, not replace, human judgment.
The session ended with a lively question-and-answer round with the audience. Both Tharoor and Chandrachud agreed that the Constitution remains central to India’s democracy, a living guide that continues to shape the nation.
