Bangalore: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa was on Saturday convicted by a Bangalore court in connection with 18-year-old Rs 66 crore disproportionate case against her.
Special Judge John Michael D'Cunha will pronounce the quantum of punishment at 3 pm, Special Public Prosecutor Bhawani Singh said.
Jayalalithaa's close aide Sasikala Natarajan, her niece Ilavarasi and her nephew and the CM’s disowned foster son Sudhakaran were also convicted.
The verdict was delivered at a makeshit court in the Parappana Agrahara prison complex in the presence of Jayalalithaa and the other accused.
If the judge sentences her to imprisonment for a period not less than two years, the AIADMK leader will stand disqualified immediately from the Assembly and may have to step down as Chief Minister.
The AIADMK chief is accused of amassing Rs 66.65 crore between 1991 and 1996 when she was the Chief Minister of the southern state.
Jayalalithaa had to quit as Chief Minister immediately after her swearing in 2001 following the Supreme Court declaring null and void the action of the then Governor Fatima Beevi appointing her as the Chief Minister as she had been sentenced to two years rigorous imprisonment in a corruption case.
O Paneerselvan, a junior Minister handpicked by her, was appointed as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. By 2002, she was cleared of all charges and sworn-in again as the Chief Minister.
The area around the court was turned into a fortress as the platoons of Karnataka State Reserve Police, the city Armed Reserve and the Rapid Action Force were deployed, besides hundreds of police personnel, including those in plain clothes.
A large number of AIADMK supporters had gathered since early morning.
The prolonged trial saw five judges - AS Pachapure, AT Munoli, BM Mallikarjunaiah, MS Balakrishna and John Michael D'Cunha.
The case was transferred to Bangalore's Special Court in 2003 by the Supreme Court on a petition filed by DMK leader K Anbazhagan who had expressed doubts over conduct of fair trial with Jayalalithaa as Chief Minister.
Security has been increased at the DMK headquarters and residences of its senior leaders. Police said that on a request from the DMK, security had been increased at ‘Anna Arivalayam’, the headquarters of the DMK, two residences of former Tamil Nadu CM and DMK chief M Karunanidhi and the residence of party's general secretary Anbazhagan.
Appearing before the court four times, Jayalalithaa has answered 1,339 questions in closed door hearings during which she has maintained that the case was ‘politically motivated’ and ‘fabricated’ at the instance of her rival DMK.
Controversy also swirled around the case after Karnataka Advocate General BV Acharya quit as Special Public Prosecutor and Bhavani Singh came in his place. Questions were raised in the Supreme Court over appointment of Singh also.
The case was filed by Subramanian Swamy in 1996. She was arrested and jailed for some days after DMK came to power in the 1996 Tamil Nadu Assembly polls.
The Karnataka government has so far spent Rs 2.86 crore on playing host to the case, according to documents obtained by an RTI activist.
Source:-http://www.indiatvnews.com/politics/national/bangalore-court-convicts-jayalalithaa-in-da-case-20384.html
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