K. T. Thomas (judge)
Kallupurackal Thomas Thomas (born 30 January 1937) is an Indian former judge who served on the Supreme Court of India and is known for his strong opinions on Indian socio-political matters. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the Indian government in 2007 for services in the field of social affairs. Biography. K. T. Thomas was born in Kottayam district on 30 January 1937. After schooling at Baker Memorial School, he completed his Pre-University course from CMS College Kottayam and B.A. at St. Albert's College, Ernakulam where he served as the College Union  Chairman. He studied law at Madras Law College. He enrolled as an advocate in 1960 and started his career in Kottayam as a junior advocate to Joseph Maliakal, a leading lawyer of those days. Soon, he set up his private practice at District Court, Kottayam and later, at the High Court of Kerala. In 1977, he was directly selected as District and Sessions Judge, securing first rank in the selection tests. He was promoted as a Judge of the High Court of Kerala in 1985 and served as the Acting Chief Justice in 1995. In 1996, he was appointed as  a Judge of the Supreme Court of India. During his practice as an advocate, he led an Indian delegation to attend the World Conference on Peace held at Texas, USA in 1976. He also served as Chairman of one of the Commissions set up in the World Conference. Thomas retired from service in 2002 and lives at Muttambalam in Kottayam district. His autobiography, "Honeybees of Solomon", published in 2008, is an account of his judicial service of 25 years, which has since been published in Malayalam in the name "Solomontae Theneechakal". His son, Justice Bechu Kurien, who was one of  the youngest to be a designated Senior Advocate of the Kerala High Court was sworn in as an Additional Judge of the Kerala High Court in March 2020. Notable judgement. Justice Thomas presided over the Supreme Court bench that confirmed the death sentence in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case. Political positions. Justice Thomas is very vocal in expressing his views.