Former Chief Justice of India P.N. Bhagwati, who introduced public interest litigation (PIL) to the Indian judicial system, passed away here on Thursday, family sources said. He was 95.

Chief Justice of India from July 12, 1985, to December 20, 1986, Bhagwati was born on December 21, 1921, and studied in Bombay. The son of N.H. Bhagwati, who went on to become a Supreme Court judge, he began his law practice at the Bombay High Court and was elevated to the bench of the Gujarat High Court in 1960. He became its Chief Justice in 1967, and a Supreme Court judge in 1973.