‘Another verdict was impossible’: Dileep’s lawyer Raman Pillai on his acquittal
The verdict in the actor assault case stands with truth and justice, said Dileep’s counsel senior advocate B Raman Pillai, speaking to the media after the actor was acquitted in the case on Monday, December 8. “I expected a just verdict, anything other than this was impossible,” he said. The lawyer was not present in court during the pronouncing of the verdict. He was recuperating at home after a knee-surgery. “I knew this was a fabricated case. If I had left this case, it would have not happened. I went to the extent of postponing a surgery on my leg for this,” he said, speaking to the media from his home. When asked by the media if the survivor got justice, he said, “Definitely yes, everyone she named should be punished. She did not name Dileep at first. She will appeal in the High Court and Supreme Court. But can a case be won with falsehood alone?”Speaking about hostile witnesses in the case, Raman Pillai said, “There is no truth in the statements recorded by the police. They record whatever supports the police case. There are even prosecution witnesses who changed their statements.”“I have been practising law for over half a decade. I have never conducted a case like this,” he said, claiming that not a single truthful evidence was presented.He was then asked about MLA Uma Thomas' allegation that late PT Thomas was under pressure to change his statement. “What could he have changed? He didn’t know anything,” the lawyer said. PT Thomas was among the first who spoke to the survivor immediately after the crime on the night of February 17, 2017.“The court has the statements of [the survivor’s] mother, her friend Ramya Nambeesan, and her fiance. The mother wasn’t examined in court, but the other two were. In all of their statements, they said they didn’t know of the survivor having any enemies in the film industry or outside,” Raman Pillai said.Raman Pillai said that there was a conspiracy to target Dileep. He said, “I am the one who conducted the case, I know from having studied it that there was a conspiracy to target Dileep. I am aware of how the conspiracy was hatched, but I cannot reveal that now. Those are guesses, I don’t have proof.” He added, "A senior officer assigned the investigation charge to Baiju Paulose –the junior most in the team – with the sole aim of targeting Dileep.” “The trial began in January 2020. By December 2021, we had finished cross examination of 200 witnesses. The last witness was Baiju Paulose. But the prosecutor walked out of the court for no reason on the day Baiju Paulose was to be examined. They then petitioned for further investigation. If not, the case would have ended in April 2022,” Raman Pillai said. He further said, “Balachandrakumar was also part of the conspiracy [against Dileep]. Until then, there wasn’t any evidence, which is why Baiju Paulose did not give a statement back then.” Raman Pillai also alleged, “Think of it, after almost 200 accused were examined in a case, a new crime was registered with the investigating officer as the complaint, accusing Dileep of conspiring to murder the IO. What has come of the case, they have not even been able to even file a final report.”The case saw years of delay and multiple petitions filed by Dileep. “The delay in the case is not because of us. We have not got stays in the case ever,” Raman Pillai said.The News Minute will publish a detailed profile of B Raman Pillai soon. You can read our coverage of the Kerala actor assault case here.
THE verdict in the actor assault case stands with truth and justice, said Dileep’s counsel, senior advocate B Raman Pillai, speaking to the media after the actor was acquitted in the case on Monday, December 8. “I expected a just verdict, anything other than this was impossible,” he said.
The lawyer was not present in court during the pronouncing of the verdict. He was recuperating at home after a knee surgery. “I knew this was a fabricated case. If I had left this case, it would not have happened. I went to the extent of postponing a surgery on my leg for this,” he said, speaking to the media from his home.
When asked by the media if the survivor got justice, he said, “Definitely yes, everyone she named should be punished. She did not name Dileep at first. She will appeal in the High Court and Supreme Court. But can a case be won with falsehood alone?”
Speaking about hostile witnesses in the case, Raman Pillai said, “There is no truth in the statements recorded by the police. They record whatever supports the police case. There are even prosecution witnesses who changed their statements.”
“I have been practising law for over half a decade. I have never conducted a case like this,” he said, claiming that not a single truthful evidence was presented.
He was then asked about MLA Uma Thomas' allegation that late PT Thomas was under pressure to change his statement. “What could he have changed? He didn’t know anything,” the lawyer said. PT Thomas was among the first people to speak to the survivor immediately after the crime on the night of February 17, 2017.
“The court has the statements of [the survivor’s] mother, her friend Ramya Nambeesan, and her fiancé. The mother wasn’t examined in court, but the other two were. In all of their statements, they said they didn’t know of the survivor having any enemies in the film industry or outside,” Raman Pillai said.
Raman Pillai said that there was a conspiracy to target Dileep. He said, “I am the one who conducted the case. I know from having studied it that there was a conspiracy to target Dileep. I am aware of how the conspiracy was hatched, but I cannot reveal that now. Those are guesses, I don’t have proof.”
He added, "A senior officer assigned the investigation charge to Baiju Paulose –the junior most in the team – with the sole aim of targeting Dileep.”
“The trial began in January 2020. By December 2021, we had finished cross examination of 200 witnesses. The last witness was Baiju Paulose. But the prosecutor walked out of the court for no reason on the day Baiju Paulose was to be examined. They then petitioned for further investigation. If not, the case would have ended in April 2022,” Raman Pillai said.
He further said, “Balachandrakumar was also part of the conspiracy [against Dileep]. Until then, there wasn’t any evidence, which is why Baiju Paulose did not give a statement back then.”
Raman Pillai also alleged, “Think of it, after almost 200 accused were examined in a case, a new crime was registered with the investigating officer as the complaint, accusing Dileep of conspiring to murder the IO. What has come of the case, they have not even been able to file a final report.”
The case saw years of delay and multiple petitions filed by Dileep. “The delay in the case is not because of us. We have not got stays in the case ever,” Raman Pillai said.
The News Minute will publish a detailed profile of B Raman Pillai soon. You can read our coverage of the Kerala actor assault case here.
