Page 27 - Demo

Why had the Court of Wards taken this step; this was the question on everyone's minds after all. Ayyar went straight for the jugular. He told the judge that the court should pay no regard to the wishes of the father, as he is addicted to abnormal and eccentric habits. And therefore, it was urgent that the children be moved away from his %u2018pernicious influence%u2019.Even as the court was digesting this, Ayyar produced his trump card. All the closest relatives had agreed with this decision. The mother (the Maharani), the Dowager Maharani, and the brother had all agreed that the children should be sent away. The Court of Wards had taken its decision after consulting them and all four, except the father, had agreed upon this. It seemed an open-and-shut case. Now it was the turn of the plaintiff to make his arguments. The crowd craned their necks to see which luminary would take up the cudgels on his client's behalf. Keeping with the Maharaja's position as the wealthiest zamindar in the south, it could be expected that he could take recourse to the finest legal minds that money could buy. Then came the twist. A low buzz went around the court. There would be no lawyer.The Maharaja would present his arguments himself, despite having no legal qualifications whatsoever. This seemed to be utter folly. A Maharaja who had enjoyed a life of luxury, without any legal qualifications was going up against one of the most brilliant legal brains in the Empire. At the insistence of his mother, the Dowager Maharani, the Maharaja was accompanied by a young but rising lawyer KR Vepa, from Vizag. Vepa, who would later go on to have a 17