Assets case: Verdict delivers crippling blow; can Jayalalithaa fight back?

By Aravind S KamalBangalore: The Special Court’s verdict against former Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa in the disproportionate assets case leaves her with legal options to fight her case, but it delivers a serious blow to her political career. She is known for her resilience and the spirit to fight back. But this time she might find clawing back into positive public perception difficult.[caption id="attachment_1732981" align="alignleft" width="380"] AIADMK leader J Jayalalithaa. PTI[/caption]On a day that witnessed heightened tension in Bangalore, the court verdict almost pushed Jayalalithaa into political oblivion, as she cannot contest elections for six years after completing her mandatory 4 years of prison sentence. In effect, she has to stay away from electoral politics for the next 10 years. However, she is free to contest the verdict of the Special Court in the Supreme Court. She is also expected to move a bail application.The three other co-accused in the case, Sasikala Natarajan (her aide), disowned foster son VN Sudhakaran and J Illavarasai, were also found guilty in the case and sentenced to jail for four years and were fined Rs 10 crore each.Special Court Judge Justice John Michael D'Cunha pronounced the verdict in the afternoon and soon followed it up with the sentencing as well. All the four accused were tried under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 for amassing wealth (Rs 66.65 crore), which was disproportionate to their known sources of income. It includes 2,000 acres of land, 30 kg of gold and 12,000 sarees.They were convicted for offences punishable under Section 120(B) of the IPC (criminal conspiracy), 13(1) of the Prevention Corruption Act (criminal misconduct by public servants) and 109 (abetment), according to Special Public Prosecutor Bhavani Singh.The case was registered against Jayalalithaa by the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) of Tamil Nadu police in 1996 on the basis of a complaint filed by Subramanian Swamy, who is now part of the BJP.Apparently, Jayalalithaa appeared dejected with the court verdict and complained of chest pain. She was immediately examined by the doctors appointed by the Special Court. In the afternoon during the break, she had refused food provided by the court officials. For now, she will be an inmate of the Bangalore Central Jail, as it is not clear whether she will be moved to a different jail or different state.Sources in the Bangalore Central Jail said that a VIP cell had been set up for Jayalalithaa and she would be assigned the number late evening. They said that if necessitated, Jayalalitha would be taken to the Lady Curzon & Bowring Hospital or Jayadeva Institute of Cardiology for detailed health check-up.Jayalalithaa was not available for comments but her supporters termed it as a political vendetta. Her close follower and Tamil Nadu’s Finance Minister O Panneerselvam was present in the court premises. Twice, Jayalalithaa held private talks with Panneerselvam, who is likely to replace Jayalalithaa as the next CM of Tamil Nadu.Thousands of party workers of AIADMK had arrived in Bangalore anticipating victory for their favorite leader. However, as soon as the verdict was pronounced, the leaders broke down condemning DMK leaders for conspiring against Jayalalithaa. The Karnataka police had beefed up security across Bangalore anticipating trouble. They had to resort to lathi charge to disperse the crowd.The Special Court has been set up in the Bangalore Central Jail in Parappana Agrahara off Hosur Road, just 25 minutes distance from the Tamil Nadu border. The police had stopped more than 30 buses ferrying AIADMK party workers at the Karnataka-Tamil Nadu earlier in the day to prevent any untoward incident.The AIADMK had swept the recent parliamentary polls by winning from 37 of the 39 seats in Tamil Nadu.