Jayalalithaa sworn-in as TN chief minister

AIADMK general secretary J. Jayalalithaa was sworn-in as chief minister of Tamil Nadu for the fifth time on Saturday.

Jayalalithaa, 67, was administered the oath of office and secrecy by Governor K. Rosaiah at the packed Madras University Centinary Auditorium.

The governor also administered oath of office to the council of ministers.

Jayalalithaa would head a 29-member government in the 14th Tamil Nadu assembly.

A large number of people lined on both the sides of the roads starting from Jayalalithaa's residence till the swearing-in venue.

The AIADMK party won the elections in 2011 and Jayalalithaa was sworn in as the chief minister then.

Last September, she was disqualified after a court in Bangalore convicted her for four years jail term and Rs.100 crore fine in an 18-year old disproportionate assets case.

The Karnataka High Court upheld her appeal and acquitted her of all the charges.

AIADMK lawmakers in a meeting at the party headquarters on Friday elected Jayalalithaa as leader of the legislature party.

Subsequently, Chief Minister O.Panneerselvam and his council of ministers resigned from their posts and Rosaiah extended an invitation to Jayalalithaa to form the government.