President Pranab Mukherjee has approved the appointment of senior advocate K K Venugopal as the new Attorney General of India and formal orders are expected soon, sources said here on Friday.
Venugopal, 86, who will succeed Mukul Rohatgi, had served as the Additional Solicitor General in the Morarji Desai government. He assisted the Supreme Court in a number of cases and was an amicus curiae in the 2G Spectrum scam case.
Among the cases handled by Venugopal are the Mandal case, Ayodhya dispute, the presidential reference regarding appointment of judges and also the case involving judicial appointments.
He represented former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa in the wealth case and defended her in the petition challenging her appointment as chief minister. He argued in the presidential reference in Gujarat election case in 2002.
He was also the counsel for LK Advani in the Babri Masjid demolition case, and argued against slapping of conspiracy charge against the veteran BJP leader.
Venugopal had represented Dalit leader Mayawati in a corruption case and assisted the Bhutan government to frame its constitution.
In his 50-year-long career, Venugopal has received many awards, including a Padma Vibhushan in 2015, Padma Bhushan in 2002, and many honours from national and international universities.
Venugopal's predecessor, Mukul Rohatgi, 61, had his term extended on 3 June. On 12 June, he wrote to the government saying he did not wish to have his term extended as he wished to get back to private practice. "I have worked for five years as law officer under the Vajpayee government and now three years under the Modi government," Rohatagi said. "I want to return to my private practice. I have a good relationship with the government… That's why I wrote to the government not to extend my term".