THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Retired district judge G Rajappan Assari, 84, who played a mediator in the high-profile Ayyankali Pada hostage case, passed away. A resident of Krishnasurya in Kottyode, Assari had a long career in the judiciary. He had served as an additional district judge at the Ernakulam District Court in 1986 and at the district courts of Kollam and Palakkad. He retired in 2000 as the principal district and sessions judge of Palakkad. His funeral was held in Attingal on Monday.
He had served as a law officer for the Devaswom Board and KSEB. In 1996, during the high-profile Ayyankali Pada hostage case in which the Palakkad district collector was taken hostage, he acted as a mediator. He was also the head of the inquiry commission when the Thumba firing case took place. Assari’s legal journey began at the Attingal court, where he practised as an advocate.
He later served as an additional public prosecutor for nine years and was twice elected the president of the Attingal Bar Association. He was also active in politics, serving as the president of the Congress Attingal block committee and as a KPCC member. Assari’s son-in-law, professor Rajkishan remembered him as a man of principles and punctuality.
“After finishing fourth grade, he sold flowers at temples and ran tuitions to make ends meet. He became an advocate at the age of 22. His journey was entirely his own. The first time I visited him, I was a minute late. He checked his watch and pointed it out. Even when he was bedridden, he never let go of this trait,” said Rajkishan. Assari was known for his dedicated approach to the law.
Assari is survived by his wife, S Leelabhai and children, Rajalakshmi, Rajashree (Palakkad District Court) and Rajagopal (Digital Recording Studio, Attingal) his son-in-law professor Rajkishan and daughter-in-law Dimple Rajagopal.