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Adv. Vijay Tulpule was born in Mumbai on 22 September 1943, the son of the cardiologist Traymbak Hari Tulpule. His elder brother, the late Dr. Ashok Tulpule, was also a well known cardiologist. The family home in Dadar was a meeting place for freedom-movement activists, and during the Emergency many took shelter there. Classical musicians, among them Pandit Bhimsen Joshi and Hirabai Badodekar, were friends of the family.

He completed school at King George High School, Dadar, in 1959, studied at Elphinstone College and then St. Xavier's College, and graduated in 1964. He took his law degree at Government Law College, Mumbai, in 1967. Colleagues recalled that he grew up with liberal socialist convictions.

He was enrolled as an advocate with the Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa on 27 March 1968.

As Government Pleader and Public Prosecutor, Adv. Tulpule conducted State appeals, confirmation cases and detention matters. Speakers at the Reference described him as a model officer of the Court who never identified himself with the case, and whose commitment, once he accepted a brief, was complete.

In a murder appeal that reached the High Court after 13 years, he persuaded the Division Bench of Justice N. U. Arumugham and Justice R. P. Desai that the acquittal was wrong, and the accused was convicted under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code. Asked why he was not pressing for the death sentence, he answered that as an officer of the Court and the State's representative he sought only life imprisonment, and explained why. When the Bench asked whether his statement should be recorded, he said that he insisted on it. The Supreme Court later endorsed his stand.

In the shoes scam case, a police officer instructing him asked that the Court be told facts that were not correct, describing them as orders of the Home Department. Adv. Tulpule refused. The Court issued a non-bailable warrant against the officer, and Adv. Tulpule argued the matter on the true facts and the law and obtained orders in favour of the State. The principle he established was that a Public Prosecutor is an officer of the Court and not the mouthpiece of the police.

“I am standing between My Lord and the accused. As long as I am standing here, I will not allow any arbitrariness.”

Adv. Vijay Tulpule was a Bombay Ranji Trophy probable before he entered the legal profession. The Reference records that Sunil Gavaskar and Dilip Vengsarkar played with him, and that Dilip Vengsarkar recognised his cricketing ability. Senior Advocate Anil Sakhare recalled that he would have represented the Indian cricket team but for his straightforward, defiant nature and no-nonsense attitude in life.

Adv. Deepak Thakre recalled an all India advocates' final at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore, in which he scored 90 and received a standing ovation that included the then Chief Justice of India, Justice M. N. Venkatachaliah, and the spinner Erapalli Prasanna. He led the Advocates' team in the Indian High Courts Cricket Tournament and sponsored young players at Dadar Union Club and Matunga Gymkhana.

From 1994 to 1999 he was President and Patron of the Indian Advocates Cricket Association, where he was known as Guruji. He also headed volleyball, carrom and badminton associations and promoted table tennis. He attended State and national volleyball championships in small towns, met the cost of lodging and meals for players, and intervened when a leading player was denied a place in the Maharashtra State team.

1. 1943Born in Mumbai on 22 September.
2. 1959 to 1964King George High School, Elphinstone College, then St. Xavier's College.
3. 1967Law degree, Government Law College, Mumbai.
4. 1968Enrolled as an advocate on 27 March. Joined the chamber of the late Adv. Ramrao Adik, then practised at the Dadar Court.
5. 1992 to 1994Six-day hunger strike for the jurisdiction of the City Civil Court.
6. 1994 to 1999President and Patron, Indian Advocates Cricket Association.
7. 1998 to 2000Government Pleader and Public Prosecutor, Bombay High Court.
8. 2017Passed away in Mumbai on 29 September, aged 74. Full Court Reference held on 17 November.

At the time of the Full Court Reference in 2017, the Advocates' Association of Western India was holding a Vijay Tulpule Cricket Championship Trophy, and the Mumbai Cricket Association held one for under-13 teams.

In October 2026, the winners of the 38th All India Advocates' Cricket Tournament will receive The Vijay Tulpule Trophy in the name of the late Adv. Vijay Tulpule.

“Be sure to put your feet in the right place, then stand firm.”