Former Union law minister Ram Jethmalani passed away earlier today after prolonged illness. He was 95 years old.
Jethmalani had been ill since last two weeks. Jethmalani is survived by his son noted lawyer Mahesh Jethmalani and a daughter who lives in the US. His other daughter had passed away prior to his demise.
Jethmalani was born on 14th September, 1923 in Shikharpur in Sindh Province (now Pakistan). His first prominent case was that of KM Nanavati vs State of Maharashtra in 1959. The film Rustom starring Akshay Kumar is based on this story.
He has also defended various smugglers and criminals including former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s killers in Madras High Court in 2011. He even defended Harshad Mehta and Ketan Parekh in stock market scams. He also defended Parliament attack conspirator terrorist Afzal Guru as well as Manu Sharma the prime accused in Jessica Lall Murder Case.
He represented the BJP in the Lok Sabha in 6th and 7th Lok Sabha and served as union minister of law in the Vajpayee government. In 2004, he contested against Vajpayee from Lucknow.