Veteran lawyer and former Union Minister Jethmalani dies at 95

Tribune News Service
New Delhi, September 8

Veteran lawyer and former Union Law Minister Ram Jethmalani passed away here on Sunday morning.

He would have turned 96 on September 14, had he been alive.

He is survived by his son senior advocate Mahesh Jethmalani and a daughter, Shobha, who is said to be settled in the US. His second daughter Rani died in 2011.

Jethmalanii was cremated at the Lodhi Road crematorium here in the presence of family members, Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and prominent politicians.

His son lit the funeral pyre at 5:30 pm.

Jethmalani's daughter and his daughter-in-law were also present at the funeral. 

He was a member of the Rajya Sabha.

Widely recognised as doyen of legal profession in India, he had the uncanny ability to be in the limelight.

Jethmalani fought many important cases and hit national headlines when he decided to represent the killers of former prime ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi.

The legal luminary—who became famous in the Nanavati trial in the 1950s—had been representing accused in high profile cases.

Jethmalani represented the Hinduja brothers in the Bofors scam case, Parliament Attack case accused SAR Gilani, stock market scam case accused Harshad Mehta and Ketan Parekh, Jessica Lal murder case accused Many Sharma, 2G scam accused and DMK leader Kanimozhi and many others.

He served as a Minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government and was elected twice to the Lok Sabha on a BJP ticket.

Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi Condoling the demise of Jethmalani.

Naidu said the country has lost a great intellectual and a patriot.

“Deeply saddened to learn about the demise of Shri Ram Jethmalani  ... one of the brilliant minds of Bharat. In his passing away the nation has lost a distinguished jurist, a great intellectual & a patriot, who was active till his last breath,” the Vice-President’s secretariat tweeted.

The Prime Minister said the country has lost an exceptional lawyer and an iconic figure who made rich contributions in courts and Parliament.

Modi said Jethmalani was “witty, courageous and never shied away from boldly expressing himself on any subject”.

“In the passing away of Shri Ram Jethmalani Ji, India has lost an exceptional lawyer and iconic public figure who made rich contributions both in the Court and Parliament,” the prime minister tweeted.  

I consider myself fortunate to have got numerous opportunities to interact with Shri Ram Jethmalani Ji. In these sad moments, my condolences to his family, friends and many admirers. He may not be here but his pioneering work will live on! Om Shanti.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 8, 2019

Ram Jethmalani ji’s passing away is a irreparable loss to the entire legal community. He will always be remembered for his vast knowledge on legal affairs. My condolences to the bereaved family. Om Shanti Shanti Shanti.

— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) September 8, 2019

Deeply condole the passing away of the veteran lawyer and former Law Minister Ram Jethmalani. His brilliance, eloquence, powerful advocacy and sound understanding of law will remain a worthy example in legal profession. My profound condolences.

— Ravi Shankar Prasad (@rsprasad) September 8, 2019