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Corrupted Pro-LTTE Terrorists Jayalalithaa

Corrupted Pro-LTTE Terrorists Jayalalithaa

Posted by admin On September 20, 2014 0 Comment

September 27^th draws near and with it the verdict on a corruption case against pro-LTTE Tamil terrorists Indian politician Jayalalithaa Jayaram is much at stake.

Notoriety, humiliation and the looming prospect of the horror of a stint in prison — anathema to a Dravidian behemoth, the AIADMK. Jayalalithaa Jayaram, three-time Chief Minister of the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, now faces all these as the verdict in the Disproportionate Assets case against her inches closer.

Jayalalithaa, if convicted, could well become the first Chief Minister to be forced to step down, as per the 2013 Supreme Court ruling on the Representation of People Act.

Rendered fatherless when she was two years old, Jayalalithaa and her mother Sandhya looked to South Indian cinema to make ends meet. At the tender age of 15, Jayalalithaa began to star in films. Success in cinema led her to meet MG Ramachandran or MGR, the reigning superstar of Tamil cinema who would go on to become her political mentor. It was a dream run for Jaya from 1982 when she joined MGR’s Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (ADMK) to 1991 when she became Chief Minister for the first time.

By 1996 though, Jaya was in trouble. She was defeated by arch rival Karunanidhi and a string of corruption cases followed, one of which was the Disproportionate Assets case filed in September 1996.

The other cases

Jayalalithaa Jayaram got a taste of jail in December 1996, when she was arrested for a few days in the colour TV case. This too was a case of alleged corruption and misuse of power wherein prices of over 45,000 TV sets were allegedly procured by the government at over Rs 14,000 premium over the market rate. The allegation against Jaya and Sasikala was that they put away Rs 8.53 crores.

The TANSI case too was a nerve-wracking one for Jaya. Accused of buying government land at a throwaway price through a company in which she was a silent partner, Jaya was convicted by the lower court but later exonerated by the Supreme Court.

“She would have easily continued as Chief Minister like MGR but she made many mistakes between 1991 and 1996,” said Congress leader Thirunavukkarasu, former AIADMK leader who was a Jaya loyalist in the 1980s.

Another case filed in 1997 against both Jaya and Sasikala for not filing personal income tax returns for the years 1993-94 is still being heard in the lower courts. Cases were also filed against Sasi Enterprises (in which Jaya and Sasikala are partners) for not filing tax returns for the years 1991-92 and 1992-93. Jayalalithaa agreed this year to pay the compounded amount due to the IT department but the department is deliberating whether to accept that or proceed with prosecution.

“The DA case and the IT case are the last two cases standing against her,” said Gnani, political analyst and well-known Tamil author. “She has been acquitted in all the other cases.”

THE DA CASE

A salary of Re 1 — it may have been a political masterstroke in a hysterical state, but Jayalalithaa’s trumpeting about her austerity would come back to bite her when the regime changed.

In 1995, Jayalalithaa’s foster son Sudhakaran, the nephew of her closest friend and confidante Sasikala, was to marry the granddaughter of a famous Tamil actor Sivaji Ganesan. The wedding was a display in opulence! As one journalist at the time remarked, “Extravagant, flamboyant and well… flashy! That’s what the wedding was, in a nutshell.”

A papier-mache fort adorning a 70,000 square feet pandal, 85 foot high cutouts of a larger-than-life Jayalalithaa, a 2 kilometre long route taken by the groom to the pandal and the streets around her Poes Garden residence turned into a veritable theme park of fountains and Hindu dieties — this wedding was no ordinary one.

R.K. Radhakrishnan, senior journalist with the Frontline was witness to the spectacle. “It was like witnessing a royal wedding, the kind we see in movies,”. “I still remember the roads in Adyar to MRC Nagar decked up. Actually, decked up is not the word. Lavishly decorated too falls short. And there were chariots there and the works – horse-drawn etc. I was astounded!”

It was to prove her undoing.

Karunanidhi, who came back to power in 1996, slapped a slew of corruption cases against ‘Amma’ (Mother — Jayalalithaa’s political moniker). One of these, popularly known as the DA case or the Disproportionate Assets Case is finally coming to a close 18 years later.

The case itself was filed by the Department of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC). The Income Tax Department too swooped down at around the same time, raiding her properties in Chennai and Hyderabad. Jayalalithaa’s aide Sasikala was not spared. Nor were the companies that they had allegedly set up together as partners, through which large sums of money had been routed.

The final figure worked out to Rs 66 crore, a mind-boggling amount at the time. Documents showing properties worth Rs 58 crores, 30 kilograms of gold including 400 pairs of bangles, 500 kilograms of silver, 10,000 sarees, 750 pairs of footwear and over 100 wrist watches were seized by the authorities.

The question became the metaphorical sword over Jayalalithaa’s head: If she only drew a salary of one rupee as Chief Minister, how did she amass so much wealth during the five-year period?

Jayalalithaa’s counsel have repeatedly argued in court that the sarees and the jewellery were gifts given to her by film directors during her cine heydays. They have painstakingly argued that she was only a “silent partner” in a number of companies along with Sasikala and a slew of her relatives — they have claimed that she had no knowledge of the money that was being routed through these companies.

Counsel for the defence are tight-lipped, unwilling to comment before the verdict. “We are optimistic and we have completed arguments,” Jayalalithaa’s counsel B. Kumar told. “We are awaiting the court’s verdict,” he added. Counsel for Sasikala though refused to comment. “We are busy, please, not now,” insisted Ashokan, counsel for Sasikala in the DA case.

“Politically, whether it is acquittal or conviction in this case, it is a very important date for Jaya,” said Thirunavukkarasu. “Whether she is convicted or acquitted, there will be an effect of this case on Tamil Nadu politics,” he said.

18 years have gone by — the case was transferred to a Bangalore special court when Jayalalithaa came back to power in 2001 over fears she would try to tamper with witnesses. The DMK’s General Secretary K. Anbazhagan impleaded himself as a petitioner in the case and became the key driving power behind the case. Seven judges, three public prosecutors and 25 petitions in the Supreme Court later, the DA case are now up for orders on the 27^th of September at the Bangalore Special Court.

“If she is found guilty of having disproportionate wealth, it would mean that corruption charges are true,” said political analyst Gnani. “That will be huge and it will reflect in the next elections in 2016. A hefty fine and a stint in jail could bring down her image in the public sphere. Politically, this case is very crucial for Jayalalithaa.”

A case which has dogged her for 18 of her 30 years in public life… one that she has fought tooth and nail… could well be the one that could change Tamil Nadu politics forever. Tamil Nadu awaits September 27^th with bated breath.

TIMELINE

From cine star to politics.Jayalalithaa’s meteoric rise to fame

Born on February 24, 1948
Acted in first film “Vennira Aadai” in 1965
First film with political mentor MGR also in 1965
Joined AIADMK in 1982
Appointed Propaganda Secretary of AIADMK in 1983
MGR died in 1987, splitting the AIADMK into 2 factions
AIADMK unites under Jayalalithaa in 1989
Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu for the first time in 1991
Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu for the second time in 2001
Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu for the third time in 2011

CASES AGAINST JAYALALITHAA

1996 Disproportionate Assets Case

Charge: Amassed wealth disproportionate to known sources of income to the tune of Rs 66 crores
Status: Orders in case on September 20^th 2014

INCOME TAX CASE

Charge: Non-filing of personal IT returns in 1993-94 and not filing returns of Sasi Enterprises for the years 1991-92 and 1992-93
Status: Hearing continues

COLOUR TV CASE

Charge: Misused position of power to procure 45,000 colour TV sets by the government at a premium of Rs 14,000 per piece over and above the market rate
Status: Acquitted

TANSI CASE

Charge: Misused position of power to buy government land at throwaway price, depriving exchequer of Rs 8.53 crores
Status: Convicted in lower court but acquitted by Supreme Court

THE DA CASE