Ram Jethmalani first rose to fame during the Harshad Mehta case. Since then he has successfully represented some high profile clients such as LK Advani in a hawala case, Jayalalithaa in a disproportionate assets case and Kanimozhi in 2G scam cases among others.
He is also representing the Mehta family in their fight to reduce net liabilities and protect assets from seizure by their custodian. This battle has been ongoing.
Ram Jethmalani
Ram Jethmalani was an esteemed Indian lawyer with an outstanding seven-decade legal career, known for defending high-profile clients in some of India’s most high-stakes cases. His legal expertise was legendary and left an imprint across multiple disciplines including criminal and constitutional law.
Ram was born in Sikharpur, Pakistan but moved with his family to Mumbai when he was still very young. Although his father, Boolchand Jethmalani, wanted him to pursue engineering instead, Ram chose law instead and completed his matriculation examination quickly before enrolling at Bombay University as a law student.
After earning his law degree, he taught as a lecturer in a government college in Mumbai before attending Wayne State University to further his knowledge in comparative law courses. Later that same year he was appointed Chairman of the Bar Council of India for four terms both before and after an Emergency was declared in India.
Ram was known for being involved in numerous high-profile cases during his time as Chairman of the Bar Council, most notably K M Nanavati vs State of Maharashtra; it made him famous and earned him the moniker “smuggler’s lawyer.” Additionally, his defense of criminals affected his public perception adversely.
Ram Jethmalani was not only known for defending high-profile clients, but was also an active politician who advocated on their behalf and opposed the Mandal Report. Additionally, he ran as an independent candidate but lost in elections he competed.
Ram was well known for defending Yakub Memon in the 1993 Mumbai bombings and was an advocate against capital punishment in the Jain Hawala case. Additionally, he represented Mohammad Azharuddin’s wife Jessica Lall murder case; represented 2G scam accused Kanimozhi; was an outspoken critic of 2002 Gujarat Riots (including how Indian government responded); announced his retirement from legal practice in September 2017; his name will long be remembered due to fiercely protective nature.
Sucheta Dalal
Sucheta Dalal is one of India’s premier financial journalists and best known for her expose of Harshad Mehta’s 1992 stock market fraud scheme. Her expose earned several awards, as well as being nominated for a Padma Shri award. Furthermore, she is an author of numerous law books such as private international law, media law and conflicts of law as well as having an impressive investigative journalism track record on corporate scandals that have destabilized economies worldwide.
She serves on SEBI’s Primary Market Advisory Board and Investor Education and Protection Fund. Her work has been published in Economic Times, Business Standard and The Times of India; including extensive coverage on Harshad Mehta scam. Furthermore, she has written extensively on other corporate scandals such as CR Bhansali scam, bad loans in banks and various corporate shenanigans; she has even appeared on television programs such as CNBC-TV18’s Money Man Show.
Harshad Mehta was found guilty in 1992 for using stock market manipulation to divert funds from public sector enterprises to his personal accounts, ultimately leading to six years behind bars for him and over 600 civil suits against him and his family members as a result of this scandal. While many criminal cases against them and family members were eventually dismissed off, civil suits still pertain to money Mehta owes various institutions; Mehtas are fighting these lawsuits on various fronts with hopes of reducing net liabilities while protecting assets from recovery or liquidation.
Custodian appointed by the court is charged with seizing Mehta’s property and distributing them among his creditors, but his relatives have continually challenged the valuation reports by the custodian, alleging they have been inaccurate and undervalued their assets. Furthermore, some of their properties were purchased prior to 1992 scam, plus income such as TDS refunds may have come their way.
Harshad Mehta Group
Harshad Mehta was an influential stock broker and investor during the early 90s. Known as Amitabh Bacchan of Dalal Street and rival to R.K. Damani and Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, Mehta provided funds to several ruling political parties during that time, while also facing accusations of fraud with no substantial evidence against him.
His reputation has been stained by allegations of scams and his membership of the ruling party, along with allegations regarding him holding press conferences to divert attention and buy more time in case Rao falls. If that were to occur, holding these press conferences may only serve to prolong his imprisonment sentence further.
Harshad had access to vast sums from banks and PSUs who provided significant amounts for him to trade in the money market and earn massive commissions in return. For example, National Housing Bank gave him Rs 1,214 crore while Power Finance Corporation contributed another Rs 394 crore – both substantial sums at that time; from these earnings alone he managed to generate an incredible 23 percent return through call money market trading.
Though he had paid all monies owed to these institutions without engaging in any fraud or illegality, CBI registered 21 criminal cases against him without even receiving complaints from these banks and PSUs. Furthermore, after raids took place he could no longer access his computers and documents.
Ashwin Mehta, son of Harshad Mehta, is currently fighting his case in court using lesser-known attorneys without charging exorbitant legal fees; consequently, his case has progressed more slowly.
Financial experts believe Harshad did not commit any fraud, but simply took advantage of loopholes in the system. Courts should listen to his arguments and provide him with a fair trial; also it is high time authorities stop bullying innocent citizens and focus on dealing with pressing issues facing our nation.
CBI
Two and a half decades ago, Harshad Mehta became embroiled in a massive securities scam which rocked the nation and forced stock exchange reform. But justice takes time.
Ashwin Mehta, Mehta’s younger brother, has put in tireless efforts to defend both him and the family’s assets – fighting every battle with fierceness that earned him the nickname ‘Lion of Mumbai.’ And all while keeping creditors at bay.
The Harshad Mehta case catapulted many Mumbai-based lawyers into prominence. It signaled the beginning of serious money entering legal practice as Harshad and his brothers hired some of the finest attorneys available; Ram Jethmalani became widely recognized for representing victims in such high profile cases as Afzal Guru’s 2001 parliament attack conviction as well as Manu Sharma, an accused in Jessica Lal’s murder trial.
One hot afternoon after another long court day, Ashwin Mehta approached lawyers from the other camp – in this instance banks and financial institutions represented by them – with some soothing words of comfort: “Don’t worry,” he assured them, “I’ll return all your money.”
Lawyers familiar with him prior to the 1992 scandal confirms he had two or three storerooms full of share certificates and related documents, yet felt confident the courts wouldn’t hold him liable because there are no insider trading laws in India.
Mehta family was able to siphon off billions from bank accounts and invest them into stocks like ACC. This led the Sensex index to surge, while diverting funds meant for nation building into another form.
Mehta’s lawyers remain committed to recovering his money and are fighting on his behalf to recoup it from their custodian, alleging they have undervalued assets and neglected to account for income such as TDS refunds. Furthermore, they claim the custodian has misused their powers.
