The Square Circle Clinic

The Square Circle Clinic (formerly Project 39A) is a criminal justice reform clinic securing fairer trials today towards a fairer system tomorrow. Our research inquiries and pro-bono interventions cut across the system: the death penalty, mental health, pre-trial incarceration, forensic science, criminalisation of poverty, wrongful convictions, prevention of torture, and science and technology.

About The Square Circle Clinic

Over the last decade, our work has revealed how widespread unfairness is in the Indian criminal justice system. 75% of prisoners in India are from socio-economically disadvantaged sections. If due process is not followed in their trial, they do not have the resources to remedy it. We have been involved in landmark Supreme Court cases that have shaped criminal law jurisprudence such as Manoj and ors. V. State of Madhya Pradesh (May 2022), In re: human conditions in 1382 prisons (December 2018), Accused X v. State of Maharashtra (April 2019), and Rahul and ors. v. State of NCT of Delhi (November 2022).

With offices in Delhi, Hyderabad, Nagpur, and Pune, we continue our mission to generate critical perspectives on the Indian criminal justice system.

Work at The Square Circle Clinic falls under three broad categories:

Legal Representation

Our holistic legal representation takes a multi-disciplinary approach by including the expertise of social workers, psychologists, and forensic scientists. Our pro bono death penalty representation work has expanded over the years to also include an extensive mitigation investigations practice. In the last 13 years, we have provided legal representation to more than 270 death row prisoners across the country, securing 34 acquittals and 53 commutations (as of April, 2026). Our work in Maharashtra, as the Fair Trial Programme, has secured the release of over 1,600 undertrial prisoners.

Research

Our research inquiries cut across the system: mental health, forensic sciences, wrongful convictions, prevention of torture and science & technology, while we deepen our engagement with the death penalty.

Narrative-Building in Criminal Justice

We are also invested in creative practices that further tell the story of the system and those it impacts by reaching diverse audiences. Our collaboration with storytellers across disciplines has delivered rich material like zines, art installations, theatre performances and more.

Visit The Square Circle Clinic's website

Team

Profile photo of Anup Surendranath

Anup Surendranath

Designation: Professor of Law, Co-Founder & Executive Director

Profile photo of Maitreyi Misra

Maitreyi Misra

Designation: Co-Founder, Director, Mitigation & Research

Profile photo of Shreya Rastogi

Shreya Rastogi

Designation: Co-Founder, Director, Forensics & Litigation

Profile photo of Neetika Vishwanath

Neetika Vishwanath

Designation: Co-Founder, Director, Research

Profile photo of Medha Deo

Medha Deo

Designation: Programme Director, Fair Trial Programme

Profile photo of C.P. Shruthi

C.P. Shruthi

Designation: Senior Associate, Mitigation

Profile photo of Maria Divya Sahayaselvan

Maria Divya Sahayaselvan

Designation: Senior Associate, Forensics

Select Research Publications

View all research publications

Academic Writing

Writings in the Media

Events

  • ‘From Autopsy to Courtroom: A Workshop Consultation on Strengthening Forensic Medicine in India’ – May 23rd – 24th, 2026
  • Report Launch Event with Justice Vikram Nath (Judge, Supreme Court of India): Legal Aid for Undertrial Prisoners – Report of the Fair Trial Programme in Pune and Nagpur – November 7th, 2025
  • ‘Access To Justice For Undertrial Prisoners: A workshop consultation for designing innovations in Indian law schools’ – November 21st -22nd, 2025
  • ‘At a Comfortable Distance’: Visual Art Installation on the Death Penalty – January 16th – 25th, 2026

Recognitions and Awards

We were awarded the Fight for Justice Award (2025) under the Access to Justice category by the Delhi High Court Bar Association, recognising our pro-bono representational work.

Shreya Rastogi, our Director of Litigation and Forensics was awarded the 2024 Magnus Mukoro Award for Integrity in Forensic Science by the DNA Unit of the New York Legal Aid Society in New York for her pioneering work on forensics in the Indian criminal justice system.

Maitreyi Misra, our Director of Mitigation and Mental Health and Criminal Justice was awarded the Presidential Commendation at the 23rd World Congress of the World Psychiatric Association for her impressive work on its statement against the death penalty for persons with mental disabilities.

Anup Surendranath, our Executive Director, was awarded the State Award for Meritorious Teaching by the Government of Telangana, recognising his deep commitment towards the classroom and the field of criminal justice.

Maitreyi Misra, our Director of Research and Mitigation, is one of the 12 laureates chosen for the 5th cohort of the French government’s Marianne Initiative for Human Rights Defenders.

Death Penalty and the Indian Supreme Court (2007-2021) was cited by Hon’ble Justice D.Y. Chandrachud in a three judge bench decision authored by him in Sundar @ Sundarrajan v. State of Tamil Nadu (March 2023).

Death Penalty India Report was cited by the report of the 262nd Law Commission of India on the death penalty (2015).

Our reports have been cited by the United Nations Secretary General and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UN OHCHR).

We won the “Award for Research” for its extensive research on the death penalty at the inaugural edition of awards at 8th World Congress Against the Death Penalty in Berlin (November 2022).

Professor Anup Surendranath, our Executive Director, was invited to be on the Advisory Council of the Bonavero Institute of Human Rights at the University of Oxford. Professor Surendranath is the only member from South Asia on the Advisory Council.