Tushar Mehta, who started his law practice in Gujarat, came to Delhi only after Modi became the Prime Minister, since then he has represented the government in many important political cases in the Supreme Court and the High Court. 

Just as an example, Mr. Mehta appeared for UIDAI in the Aadhaar case and later on behalf of the UP government in the Ayodhya Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri dispute. Mr. Mehta then represented the Center in the Section 377 case and again for the petition of Congress in the Karnataka Assembly elections. Apart from this, Mehta represented the Center in the Rohingya case, on behalf of the Assam government in the NRC case in Assam, and on behalf of the Maharashtra government in the Bhima Koregaon case. Mr. Mehta vouched for CBI and ED against P Chidambaram and Karti Chidambaram in the Aircel Maxis case as well. Later, against the decision of the Special Court in the 2G case, Mehta was made Special PP for appeal in the Delhi High Court. In the Delhi High Court, he represented Income Tax against Sonia and Rahul Gandhi. Eventually, Mehta has so far emerged as a troubleshooter in major court cases for the Modi government. Whether it is the issue of coronavirus management and lack of oxygen in the Supreme Court and the Delhi High Court or opposing the bail of former Home Minister P Chidambaram in the Delhi District Court or the delay in registering the FIR in the communal riots in the capital Delhi. To defend Mehta has left no stone unturned in supporting the government continuously! But many don’t know that Tushar Mehta has not been associated exclusively with the BJP in his long career so far. Let’s take a look at Tushar Mehta’s career since it all began in 1988. 

Tushar Mehta’s Career Highlights: His Involvement With India’s Biggest Cases! 

Krishna Kant Vakharia helps Mehta in 1988:

Born in Jamnagar, Gujarat, Tushar Mehta moved to Ahmedabad at the age of 12 after his father’s death. He started his career as an advocate in 1987 after completing his studies at LA Shah Law College, Ahmedabad. He is currently best known as a lawyer for clients such as Narendra Modi and Amit Shah, but his career began as a Congress leader. This was Krishna Kant Vakharia, a senior advocate of the Gujarat High Court, who was an expert in the laws related to cooperative societies. In 1988, Mehta started working with him as an apprentice under a Congress leader and lawyer.

According to Vakharia, “Mehta wanted to practice in the High Court, so seeing his understanding and hard work, I gave him the first chance.”

Career started with Congress leader Amit Shah in 2000: 

In the year 2000, Tushar Mehta got a chance to work for the Ahmedabad District Cooperative Bank, then Amit Shah was the president of this society. Vakharia says that it was only after this that Mehta and Shah became good friends, as they would spend hours together discussing petitions. Mehta had also fought the case related to Amit Shah’s Gujarat Cricket Association election.

Tushar Mehta was associated with Vakharia till 2004 and after that he started his own practice. Mehta’s rise began in 2008, when Amit Shah, then Minister of State for Home and Law in Gujarat, appointed him as Additional Advocate General. It is said that during his stay in this post, he handled civil litigations for the government.

Troubleshooting between 2010-2017:

After this, in 2010, Mehta fought the case on behalf of the State of Gujarat in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh encounter case. Amit Shah was also made an accused in this case. In 2014, a Mumbai court acquitted Shah of the case.

When Narendra Modi arrived in Delhi as Prime Minister in 2014, Mehta found a place in Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi’s team of six Additional Solicitors General. However, in the team of mostly Delhi-based lawyers at that time, Rohatgi, who hails from Gujarat, is seen as an outsider. Mehta had even said on one occasion that his appointment in Delhi was surprising. He had renovated his office in Ahmedabad some time ago and suddenly one day the PM called him.

In 2017, when Mukul Rohatgi left the post of Attorney General, the process of resignation of many more lawyers from this legal team of the government also started. However, with each of these resignations, Mehta grew stronger and got opportunities to appear in bigger political cases. Be it the case related to the death of Judge BH Loya or the case of sending back Rohingyas and challenging the validity of Section 35A. In October 2017, the then Solicitor General Ranjit Kumar resigned from the post citing personal reasons. This post remained vacant for one year until Tushar Mehta was appointed to this post.

Appointed (ASG) on October 10, 2018:

ASG Tushar Mehta has been made the Solicitor General till 30 June 2020. In 2018, the post of Solicitor General was lying vacant since 20 October 2017 after the resignation of Ranjit Kumar. It has been said that Tushar Mehta was appointed ASG on 30 June 2014. 

Elected for 3 years in June 2020:

Government re-appoints Tushar Mehta as Solicitor General for three years. In 2020, 6 new Additional Solicitors General were created. Pinky Anand and AS Nadkarni would no longer be Additional Solicitor General (ASG). Attorney General’s tenure extended for 1 year and Solicitor General Tushar Mehta got another term. The government has again appointed him as the Solicitor General for three years. In 2020, the 6 new Additional Solicitors General that had been created included senior advocates Balbir Singh, Suryaprakash V Raju, Rupinder Singh Suri, N Venkataraman, Jayant Sood and Aishwarya Bhati. 

Criticisms in July 5, 2021: 

The Trinamool Congress has intensified the exercise to demand the removal of Solicitor General Tushar Mehta for meeting BJP leader Shubhendu Adhikari in West Bengal. After writing a letter to PM Modi, the MPs of the party met the President today and submitted a memorandum to him regarding gross misconduct in his office. Moitra said that we demand the immediate resignation of SG on the basis of gross misconduct and immorality. The TMC MP said that on July 1, a BJP leader, MLA, and Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly met the Home Minister at his residence. Soon after that, they went to the house of Solicitor-General Tushar Mehta at 10 Akbar Road. 

Trinamool Congress MPs had also written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding the removal of Solicitor General Tushar Mehta over his meeting with BJP leader Shubhendu Adhikari in West Bengal. In a letter to the prime minister, party MPs Derek O’Brien and Mahua Moitra alleged that the meeting between Mehta and Adhikari was not only inappropriate, but also a direct conflict of interest. At the same time, it also lowers the dignity of the post of Solicitor General, the second highest law officer of the country.

More allegations in July 11, 2021:

Mamta Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress had made serious allegations against Tushar Mehta, sitting on the post of the second highest legal officer in the country. TMC said that Solicitor General Mehta has met Suvendu Adhikari, accused in the Narada case, while Tushar Mehta himself is the central agency’s lawyer in this case. In such a situation, TMC leaders have demanded his removal, accusing him of having a biased attitude. However, Tushar Mehta denied these allegations and said that Suvendu Adhikari had come to meet him, but he was not present at home, so the meeting could not take place. The allegations made by Trinamool Congress leaders are not new for Tushar Mehta, who has taken the side of the government on many political issues during his career. His critics often talk about how he appears ready to lead the fight against the opposition in court when he should be basing his arguments on the basis of law.

The Solicitor General got COVID in July 25, 2022: 

Mehta said in a statement that he had mild symptoms and isolated himself. Referring to the swearing-in ceremony of President Draupadi Murmu, he said that I am sorry that I will not be able to personally witness the historic oath.

What Are A Solicitor General’s Duties?

• The Attorney General is the chief legal advisor to the government and the chief advocate of the government in the Supreme Court. 

• He acts as an assistant to the Attorney General, while the Additional Solicitor General assists the Solicitor General. 

• The Attorney General is appointed by the President under Article 76(1) of the Constitution.

• The Solicitor General is the Principal Public Prosecutor. The Solicitor General is the second highest law officer of the Central Government. 

• The Solicitor General is the legal representative who represents the government in court and legal matters.