When Courage Meets the Constitution: The 3rd Fight 4 Justice Awards Honour India's Ǫuiet Defenders of Justice

NEW DELHI, Dec. 22, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The 3rd Fight 4 Justice Awards, held this evening at the Stein Auditorium, India Habitat Centre, honoured individuals and institutions whose legal battles transformed courtrooms into sites of conscience, resistance, and constitutional renewal.

Jointly organised by the Delhi High Court Bar Association (DHCBA) and Live4Freedom LLP, the Awards recognised landmark struggles where justice was not handed down easily—but fought for with courage, patience, and moral clarity.

Award Categories G Winners

Criminal Law

Umashankar Yadav
Recognised for an extraordinary legal battle that exposed systemic injustice in criminal prosecution and reaffirmed the fundamental principles of due process and fair trial.

Specially Abled

Pragya Prasun
Honoured for her courageous fight to secure dignity, access, and equality for persons with disabilities, reshaping the understanding of disability rights as constitutional rights.

Child Rights

Sukdeb Saha
Awarded for his relentless pursuit of justice for children, ensuring protection, rehabilitation, and dignity for minors caught in institutional neglect and abuse.

Tribal Rights

Ram Charan
Recognised for his lifelong struggle to secure land, inheritance, and dignity for tribal communities, reaffirming constitutional protections for India's most marginalised citizens.

Women's Rights

Prabha Tyagi
Honoured for her fight against patriarchal legal structures, asserting women's autonomy, dignity, and equal status under the law.

Administration G Governance

Sukanya Shantha
Awarded for her fearless work in holding state institutions accountable, strengthening transparency, democratic oversight, and constitutional governance.

Labour Rights

K. Umadevi
Recognised for a landmark legal victory that affirmed labour dignity, social security, and equality, particularly for women workers facing systemic exclusion.

Environment

Ramdas Janardhan Koli
Honoured for defending traditional fishing communities and coastal ecosystems against destructive development, asserting that environmental protection and livelihoods are inseparable.

Global Justice

Pacific Islands Students Fighting Climate Change
Awarded for their historic legal movement that brought climate accountability to the global stage, giving voice to vulnerable nations facing existential threats from climate change.

Access to Justice

The Square Circle Clinic (formerly Project 3GA)
Recognised for transforming access to justice for death-row prisoners and under- represented communities through rigorous research, advocacy, and constitutional litigation.

Lifetime Achievement Award

HEAL – Human G Environment Alliance League
Honoured for decades of unwavering commitment to environmental justice, public health, and grassroots constitutional action.

Distinguished Presence

The Chief Guest for the evening was Justice N. Kotiswar Singh, Hon'ble Judge of the Supreme Court of India. The Guest of Honour was Dr. MK Ranjitsinh Jhala, Chairman, Wildlife Trust of India, a distinguished conservationist whose work has left an enduring impact on wildlife protection and environmental justice in India.

The Awards Jury was chaired by Justice Rajendra Menon, Chairman, Armed Forces Tribunal and former Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court.

The evening also saw the presence of His Excellency Jagannath Sami, Hon'ble High Commissioner of the Republic of Fiji to India, who received the Fight 4 Justice Award in the Global Justice category on behalf of Pacific Islands Students Fighting Climate Change. His presence underscored the international significance of the Awards and highlighted the growing role of courts and citizens in addressing global challenges such as climate justice.

Voices from the Dais

Justice N. Kotiswar Singh, Hon'ble Judge, Supreme Court of India, said:

"The Fight 4 Justice Awards remind us that the Constitution is not sustained by institutions alone, but by citizens who insist that its promises be honoured. These awards matter because they celebrate courage—the courage to persist when justice is delayed, denied, or deliberately made difficult. They reaffirm why courts exist: to protect the vulnerable and to keep the conscience of the Constitution alive."

Justice Rajendra Menon, Jury Chair, stated:

"The jury's task was not to reward visibility or popularity, but to recognise depth—of struggle, of impact, and of constitutional significance. Each awardee represents a legal fight where justice prevailed because someone refused to give up."

Mr. N. Hariharan, President, Delhi High Court Bar Association, said:

"These Awards reaffirm the Bar's role not merely as advocates, but as custodians of constitutional courage. The stories honoured today remind us that the rule of law finds its truest expression when it stands with the weakest."

Shri Jatan Singh, Senior Advocate, Jury Member and Advisor, Live4Freedom, said:

"What distinguishes the Fight 4 Justice Awards is that they honour not outcomes alone, but endurance. Each case recognised here represents years—sometimes decades—of quiet struggle by individuals who refused to surrender their constitutional rights. These Awards serve as a reminder that justice survives not because it is easy, but because people are willing to fight for it."

Mr. Anand Bhardwaj and Mr. Suneal Mangal, Partners, Live4Freedom LLP, jointly stated:

"Fight 4 Justice is not about celebration—it is about recognition. Every awardee here fought against silence, power, or indifference. These awards exist to remind society that justice is not automatic—it is asserted, defended, and sometimes painfully earned."

Why the Fight 4 Justice Awards Matter

At a time of shrinking civic spaces and rising legal intimidation, the Fight 4 Justice Awards serve as a public reaffirmation of faith in the Constitution—highlighting the people behind judgments and restoring the moral imagination of justice.

Event Details

Date: Saturday, December 20, 2025

Venue: India Habitat Centre, New Delhi

The awards ceremony was followed by cocktails and dinner.

Contact for Media

Anand Bhardwaj
Partner, Live4Freedom LLP 
[email protected]
+919810114944 

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