The Karnataka High Court on Wednesday ordered issue of notices to the Tamil Nadu government on a petition by former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam general secretary, Jayalalithaa.
Ms. Jayalalithaa had petitioned the High Court against the proceedings initiated by the Special Court in Chennai and Bangalore which is hearing the disproportionate assets case against her and several others.
In her petition, she said a Special Court in Chennai was hearing two cases against her — the disproportionate assets case and the London Hotels case in which she is an accused along with several others, including T.T.K. Dinakaran, V.N. Sudhagaran, Illavarasi and Sasikala Natarajan. The cases, she said, were filed by the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC), Tamil Nadu.
The cases were transferred by the Supreme Court from Chennai to Bangalore. Since then, a Special Court in Bangalore had been hearing the cases. She said the Special Court had some time ago rejected an opinion of Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) B.V. Acharya for dropping the prosecution in the London Hotels case. The State of Tamil Nadu and the SPP filed an appeal in the High Court against the Special Court order, which was allowed.
In her present petition, Ms. Jayalalithaa said the Special Court in Tamil Nadu took cognisance of the alleged offences and issued summons to her and others on June 5, 1997. She termed the entire proceedings illegal and a violation of the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code.
Justice Keshavanarayana ordered issue of notices to the DVAC and the Special Public Prosecutor.
