Jaya's plea seeking exemption from personal appearance rejected

The additional chief metropolitan magistrate court on Thursday dismissed a petition filed by All-India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK’s) supremo and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, seeking exemption from personal appearance in a tax-related case. The court asked the chief minister to appear before the court on April 10. She failed to appear on Thursday.

While dismissing the petition, R Dakshinamurthy, the judge, said the petition was not legally maintainable.

According to sources, she had sought exemption, saying as the chief minister she had various duties to perform and chances were that things might arise which require her immediate attention at any time.

The income tax department had instituted criminal proceedings by filing complaints in 1996 and 1997 against Jayalalithaa and her friend Sasikala Natarajan, for not filing returns in their individual capacities for the assessment year 1993-94.  Again in 1997, the department filed two complaints against Sasi Enterprises and its partners — Jayalalithaa and Sasikala — allegedly failing to file returns for the assessment years 1991-92 and 1992-93.

K Ramasamy, senior special public prosecutor, opposed the petitions.

The court had, in its last hearing, in March directed Jayalalithaa and Sasikala to appear before it on Thursday for questioning and framing of charges.

In January, the Supreme Court had ordered the trial court to prosecute her for not filing the returns. The apex court also ordered the completion of the trial in the case in four months.