DMK govt included gifts in Jaya's income: Counsel

AIADMK chief Jayalalithaa on Wednesday contended in the Karnataka High Court that the then DMK government had 'illegally' included gifted items, including silver, as source of her income during the probe into the disproportionate assets case.

"The Department of Vigilance and Anti Corruption (DVAC) during the DMK rule had included gifted items including silver as source of income of the accused (Jayalalithaa), which is illegal," her counsel L Nageswar Rao told the Special Bench of Justice C R Kumaraswamy.

The Bench is hearing appeals by the former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and three others challenging their conviction for alleged accumulation of assets disproportionate to her known sources of income during 1991-96.

The Bench has been set up at the direction of the Supreme Court on December 18 to decide Jayalalithaa's plea in three months.

Rao also argued that in south, especially in Tamil Nadu, gifting costly and luxurious items to a celebrity is much in vogue.

"Right from the days of C N Annadurai (DMK founder) to MGR (M G Ramachandran-AIADMK founder) to (actor) Rajnikant, people have been gifting gold, diamond and silver items to celebrities such as them, and it is much in vogue in Tamil Nadu," he said.

He submitted that Janaki, the wife of M G Ramachandran, was no popular figure and hence people did not give precious gift items to her as was given to Jayalalithaa, who already had a fan following because of her acting and closeness to MGR.

"MGR's wife did not get precious gifts as Jayalalithaa got because she was not as popular as Jayalalithaa, by then a popular actress. Hence, the practice of hero-worshiping in Tamil Nadu fetches celebrities precious and costly items," Rao contended.

Countering the argument that DVAC, during the DMK rule had included gifted items as Jayalalithaa's source of income, Murugesh Maradi, assistant to Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) Bhavani Singh, argued that as public servant, such items could not be in her possession and instead must be handed over to the government treasury or museum.

A Supreme Court Bench, headed by Chief Justice H L Dattu, had granted conditional bail to Jayalalithaa who was sent to jail by a trial court here on September 27, saying that the hearing on her appeal against conviction in the High Court should be completed in three months from December 18.

Jayalalithaa and three others were held guilty of corruption and awarded four years of jail term by the Special Court here, which had also slapped a fine of Rs 100 crore on her and Rs 10 crore each on the three others.