During the nationwide Emergency in India between 1975 and 1977, Fundamental Rights of the citizen were suspended by the government, creating a period of police activism.

As was later revealed by a petition in the High Court of Kerala, he was held in police custody in Kakkayam and tortured as part of the interrogation.

He died from torture of extreme kind,[4] especially due to something called uruttal (a practice of "rolling" a heavy wooden log over the body of the victim).

[6] P. Rajan's father fought a long battle against the establishment to bring to light the facts behind the disappearance and expose atrocities committed by the state.

[6] The 2018 Malayalam movie Kaattu Vithachavar directed by Satheesh Paul presents investigation by a police team to disappearance of P. Rajan.

The movie acted by Prakash Bare, Tini Tom Jayaprakash Kuloor provides a factual review of events, though the names of characters have been slightly changed.

Raman, one of the protagonists, throws ink at the Kerala Home Minister in protest against the Rajan case not being resolved.

Unarthupattu (1980) - Awakening Song - directed by PA Backer also explores the brutalities of the Emergency through the eyes of an aged father searching for answers regarding the untimely death of his only son, who was also the family's sole support.

In 2006, Ormakal Zindabad (Memories live long), directed by G. Ajayan, was staged in certain places in Kerala, based on the custodial death of Rajan.

The 2021 Tamil movie Jai Bhim, directly references the Rajan case as an example of a habeas corpus wherein the rare occurrence of a cross examination in a high court as grounds for not producing a detainee by the state police is permitted.