His father T. R. Desai died young but wrote several books on Limitation, Sale of Goods, Contract Equity and Specific Relief before that.
His famous judgements include S.C.Prashar vs. Vasantsen Dwarkadas clarifying the scope of writs under Article 226 in Income-tax matters.
Justices MC Chagla and ST Desai ruled in the Bombay High Court allowing the change but with weighty obiter.
Their comments were: "The very basis of democracy is the voter and when in India we are dealing with adult suffrage it's even more important than elsewhere.. That the integrity of the voter is also safeguarded.. Before parting with this case, we think it our duty to draw the attention of Parliament to the great danger in permitting companies to make contributions to the funds of political parties.
Unwittingly, these stalwarts of the Bar had encapsulated, in an innocent, spontaneous one-act play, the entire climate of the times!"
In a particular case, arguing on Mitakshara law for Mr. Reddy, it was held in judgement,"Where ignorance is bliss, ‘Tis folly to be wise."
Desai was appointed as senior counsel to cross-examine the case cited Shiv Kirpal Singh vs Shri V. V. Giri.
He argued in the landmark judgement on reserving rights of admission in educational institutions in the case of Gujarat State against St. Xavier's College He appeared before the Supreme Court in the case of Ramesh Chander Kaushal v. Veena Kaushal ((1978) 4 SCC 70) which laid down the landmark judgment that maintenance to a wife should continue under Section 127 of the Criminal Procedure Code even after divorce.
757 (T) of 1973 appearing before a three-judge bench of the Supreme Court composed of P. N. Bhagwati, A. P. Sen. E. S. Venkataramiah JJ, he argued on the issue of whether sales of provisions effected by the assessee in a workmen's Store maintained by it are assessable to tax under Tamil Nadu General Sales-tax Act, 1959.
Blot on Democracy[dead link] [1] [2] [3] Nariman on Emergency Book on Justice Desai Famous South Asians at the Lincoln's Inn P N Bhagwati appointment Gujarat High Court Advocate's Association Legal Luminaries [4]