SC convicts Sasikala in assets case; political career in limbo

 The Supreme Court sentenced the AIADMK general secretary, who has been staking claim to the Tamil Nadu chief minister's post, to four years in jail and asked her to surrender immediately.AIADMK leader Sasikala was on Tuesday convicted by the Supreme Court in a disproportionate assets case, ending her hopes of becoming Tamil Nadu chief minister. Asking Sasikala to surrender immediately, the country’s top court sentenced her to four years in jail and fined her Rs 10 crore in connection with a two-decade-old case involving late Tamil Nadu chief minister Jayalalithaa and two of Sasikala’s relatives for amassing disproportionate wealth to the tune of Rs 66 crore. The court abated proceedings against Jayalalithaa, who passed away in December and was the prime accused in the case. The verdict means that Sasikala, who has been engaged in a tussle for the Tamil Nadu chief minister’s post for the past fortnight, will effectively be barred from electoral politics for at least a decade. The Supreme Court had ruled in 2014 that convicted lawmakers cannot fight an election for six years after their release. It also means that the AIADMK leader cannot lay claim to the post of chief minister. However, she can still prop a loyalist to rival current chief minister and AIADMK colleague O Panneerselvam.

 Reacting to the verdict, Sasikala said: "Whenever Amma (Jayalalithaa) was in crisis, I also suffered. This time also, I will take it upon me. Justice will prevail." In 2014, the Karnataka High Court had convicted all four accused of holding disproportionate assets, handing down a four-year jail term and a Rs 100 crore fine. Jayalalithaa, Sasikala and the others spent three weeks in jail before getting bail. Jayalalithaa had to step down as chief minister and Panneerselvam assumed the reins of the state. In the appeal hearing in 2015, the Karnataka High Court acquitted all the accused. The Karnataka government, which was the prosecuting agency, decided to appeal against the High Court order in the Supreme Court. On June 7, the Supreme Court had reserved its judgement after hearing the arguments. Even as the Supreme Court delivered its verdict  Sasikala was camping at a resort near Chennai along most of the AIADMK's 135 legislators as she prepared to stake claim to the chief minister' post. Her rival Panneerselvam, who had resigned last week but later said he was forced out of the post, claims that Sasikala has held the MLAs "captive”. 

So far, 12 AIADMK parliamentarians and seven MLAs, excluding Panneerselvam, have sided with him. Now, the political situation will shift significantly as Sasikala has to surrender in Bengaluru by Tuesday evening, failing which the Karnataka police can send a team to the resort and take her into custody. Without Sasikala out of the picture, Governor Vidyasagar Rao may invite Panneerselvam to prove his majority on the floor of the house. Saskikala can still file a curative petition or a review petition but until a larger bench decides, the current verdict of the 2-judge bench prevails. There is no avenue for a stay.

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