Meet Justice LN Rao, retired SC judge who acted in a film before becoming lawyer

Justice L Nageswara Rao who is set to retire as Supreme Court judge on June 7 has acted in many films, including Sanjay Dutt starrer 'Kanoon Apna Apna'. Senior Advocate Pradeep Rai revealed this fact while addressing the farewell ceremony of Justice L Nageswara Rao.

Reacting to this, Justice Rao shared his experience during his brief acting stint and said he did not want to become an actor.

"I was in the theatre when I was in college. My cousin was a director and thereby had a short role in a movie. That's it. I did not want to become an actor. Lawyers act in court and judges also do. When there is some heat we try to bring a truce between the lawyers. Acting is a part of the profession. I sometimes asked the lawyers' are you like this and then I saw both going to the coffee shop together," Justice Rao said.

Rai also said that the outgoing Supreme Court judge is a multi-talented personality he is a very good cricket player also.  He said cricket is his passion and even when he works, he switches on TV to see IPL matches.

Separately, Chief Justice of India N V Ramana called Rao's retirement is a huge loss for the Bench and his keen analytical skills and passion for the cause of justice will be thoroughly missed by all.

CJI Ramana has played a vital role in expounding the law and interpreting the constitution.

Attorney General K K Venugopal praised Justice Rao for accepting the offer of judgeship and said he was one of the few who was ready to let go of all the wealth he'd have made.

"He has delivered 163 judgments and been part of 552 benches. There seems to be nothing that Justice Rao cannot succeed at. Taking judgeship wouldn't have been an easy decision considering his successful practice. This is a test of the strength of one's character," he said.

Justice LN Rao was elevated as Supreme Court Judge on May 13, 2016. He is the seventh in the history of the apex court and was elevated directly from the Bar.

Justice Rao, hailing from Chirala in Prakasam District of Andhra Pradesh, did his law at Nagarjuna University at Guntur and was enrolled as an advocate in 1982 at the Bar Council of Andhra Pradesh.

After practicing law at Guntur District Court for two years, he shifted to Andhra Pradesh High Court and remained there till December 1994.

From January 1995 to May 2016, he practiced as a lawyer at the Supreme Court and became a senior advocate and then Additional Solicitor General.