Feb 2026
Inaugural B.N. Rau Memorial Lecture
Join us for the Inaugural B.N. Rau Memorial Lecture where we honour the legacy of Sir Benegal Narsing Rau, the Constitutional Adviser to the Constituent Assembly, who rendered his monumental service in the making of the Indian Constitution. The lecture will be delivered by Saurabh Dwivedi, Editor at the Indian Express (Hindi), and formerly, the Founding Editor of The Lallantop.
The Lecture is being organised by Charkha, the Constitutional Law Centre, at Vidhi, and is part of its initiative to take the Constitution to the very people for whom it is written and in their own languages. The inaugural lecture will be delivered in Hindi.
Event details
Date: Wednesday, 25th February, 2026
Time: 5:30 pm – 7:45 pm (tea will be served)
Venue: Amphitheatre, Sunder Nursery, New Delhi
The event is open for all. However, prior registration is recommended.
About the Lecture Series
The making of the Indian Constitution was a monumental endeavour, shaped by the contributions of many remarkable individuals. One such figure was Sir Benegal Narsing Rau, the Constitutional Adviser to the Constituent Assembly, who rendered the invaluable service of preparing the first draft of the Constitution and guiding the Assembly through its most complex deliberations. His contributions were acknowledged by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, who generously shared the credit for drafting the Constitution with Rau. The President of the Constituent Assembly, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, similarly noted that “when the history of the Indian Constitution comes to be written, Sir B.N. Rau will occupy in it a significant place.”
To honour this legacy, Charkha, the Constitutional Law Centre at Vidhi, is instituting the Annual B.N. Rau Memorial Lecture, which will invite eminent jurists, scholars, and public intellectuals to reflect on enduring questions of constitutional design, interpretation, and institutional responsibility—questions that animated Rau’s own work. The Lecture is organised with the support and blessings of Sir Rau’s family.
This annual lecture forms part of Charkha’s broader initiative to realise the promise of the opening words of the Constitution—“We the People”—by taking the Constitution to the very people for whom it is written, and in languages that are accessible to them. Each year, the Lecture will be delivered by a distinguished speaker in a recognised Indian language, beginning with Hindi for the inaugural edition.
About the Speaker
Saurabh Dwivedi is the Editor at The Indian Express (Hindi), and has previously worked with Navbharat Times, Dainik Bhaskar, and India Today. He was the Founding Editor of The Lallantop, India’s leading vernacular, digital-first news platform, widely recognised for its political coverage and distinctive new-age writing style. Over a career spanning more than fifteen years, he has extensive experience covering Indian elections and political developments, and closely observing the functioning of India’s constitutional system on the ground.
He studied mass communication at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication and also holds a Masters and MPhil in Hindi literature from the Jawaharlal Nehru University.