Despite the Karnataka High Court special judge acquitting her of all the charges in the disproportionate assets case, AIADMK general secretary Jayalalithaa is in no hurry to take back her mantle.
According to sources in the ruling party and the bureaucracy, Ms. Jayalalithaa is unlikely to take charge as Chief Minister this week.
With fresh controversy over the verdict breaking out on Tuesday as the Opposition parties alleged that the High Court judge “miscalculated” her assets, the AIADMK chief is taking her time to weigh the legal options ahead.
A meeting of her lawyers is likely to be held in the coming days, sources said.
There are strong messages from the party seniors suggesting that the former Chief Minister may wait a little longer to see if the Karnataka government moves the Supreme Court. On Tuesday, Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam met Ms. Jayalalithaa at her Poes Garden residence, party sources said.
It is not clear if four of his senior colleagues – Natham R. Viswanathan, R. Vaithilingam, Edappadi K. Palanisamy and P. Palaniappan – accompanying him were able to meet her or not, sources said.
Meanwhile, reports of discrepancies in the verdict delivered by Justice C.R. Kumaraswamy, pointing to apparent mistakes in the calculation, have also made the AIADMK camp wary.
Opposition demandThe Opposition parties have also urged the Karnataka government to file an appeal in the Supreme Court.
Some party leaders think that the party supremo is contemplating an auspicious day to resume office.
