Early Life
Jaspat Roy Kapoor was born on 16 October 1896 in Uttar Pradesh. After completing his post-graduation (M.A.), he pursued a degree in law.
Role in India’s Independence Movement
Not much is known about his contribution to the independence movement in India.
Contribution to Constitution Making
Kapoor was elected to the Constituent Assembly from United Provinces on a Congress Party ticket. He was an active participant during the Assembly debates and spoke on matters regarding parliamentary privilege, separate electorates, and the retirement age of judges.
Contributions Post-Independence
He was elected as one of the members of the Provisional Parliament in 1950. He also served as a member of the Rajya Sabha representing Uttar Pradesh (1952- 1956). During his tenure in the Upper House, he was also appointed as the Chairman of the Committee on Petitions.
He passed away on 24 April 1984.
Key Writings
He authored a book on Insurance Law.
- During the debates around the dismissal of public servants, Roy vociferously advocated amending Article 282B. He argued that no public servant should be dismissed without giving notice and sought to delete clauses to enforce this.
- He argued that the parliamentary privilege of speech guaranteed for members of Parliament should be extended to non-members as well so that they are immune to prosecution with respect to their intervention in Parliament.
- Roy moved to amend the retirement age of Supreme Court judges from sixty-five to sixty during the discussions on the appointment and retirement of judges.
- He also advocated for allotting reserved seats to constituencies where Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes members are more in number. He was against separate electorates and congratulated the minority communities for their cooperation in abolishing them.