After his acquittal in the actor assault case, Malayalam actor Dileep went straight to meet the man he said he “owes his life” to: senior advocate B Raman Pillai. Arriving at his home, the actor walked to where the lawyer sat smiling, kissed him on his cheek, hugged him, and touched his feet. 

It was on December 8 that the Additional Special Sessions Court in Ernakulam pronounced the verdict in the case. Dileep had been accused of commissioning the abduction and sexual assault of a female colleague, but Judge Honey Varghese cleared him of all charges. The Special Investigation Team (SIT) had spent years building its case, two prosecutors had resigned citing what they described as the court’s bias towards the accused, and in the final days of the trial a whistleblower appeared in court claiming that Dileep was the mastermind behind the crime.

As Dileep’s acquittal triggers fresh debates on the strength of the evidence, the court’s reasoning, and the prosecution’s failures, this lawyer deserves close attention. Senior advocate B Raman Pillai, a lawyer in his seventies, led Dileep’s defence and, despite persistent allegations of witness intimidation, survivor shaming, and other aggressive tactics, ensured that his client walked away unscathed.

When........

© newslaundry