RIP (REST IN PEACE) : RAM JETHMALANI
(SEPTEMBER 14, 1923 – SEPTEMBER 08, 2019)
Veteran Jurist Ram Jethmalani passed away on 08.09.2019. We pray for his soul to rest in peace.
He was an eminent jurist and outspoken former Union Law Minister and also Urban Development Minister during the Prime Ministership of Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
He was born in Shikarpur in Sindh province (Now in Pakistan) in 1923. Jethmalani obtained a Law Degree at the age of 17. As a Lawyer, he sought to fame in 1959 when he was the prosecutor in the K.M.Nanavati vs State of Maharashtra case in which a Naval Commander was tried for the murder of his wife’s lover.
Ram Jethmalani also fought difficult criminal cases and defended the accused in the Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi assassination cases.
Ram Jethmalani was one of the highest paid Lawyers in India. He excelled in convincing the judicial minds in favour of his clients through wit, knowledge and repartee all in a rich baritone. He also taught law students across many Universities in India.
In his 75 year long career as a Lawyer, Ram Jethmalani never had any qualms about who he was representing in Court. As an eminent Lawyer he defended people from various walks of life including big politicians like Lalkrishna Advani, Amit Sah, Lalu Prasad Yadav etc. Also he defended Don like Haji Mastan and Share Market Scammer Harshad Mehta. He defended the accused in Jessica Lall Murder Case. He had a controversy ridden public life. He courted controversies inside and outside the court of law.
Ram Jethmalani married twice, of course before the codification of Hindu Law that banned second marriage. He was a health conscious person. He was a regular Badminton player. This helped him for his energy and stamina allowing him to run from Court to Court till his late eighties.
Ram Jethmalani was a giant in the field of law. He was considered as the “Bhishma Pitamah” of Indian Law. He was very much unconventional and always fought against the tide and this is the reason that he was often misunderstood. We can call him a man with a Heart of Law and a Man with Golden Heart who enjoyed every day of his life. His death is a great loss to the Lawyers’ fraternity. Let his soul rest in peace. We pray for that.
….Ratikanta Singh.