Even as no clear picture has emerged so far on administering several movable and immovable properties left behind by former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, the Madras High Court on Thursday decided to step in and find a solution.
A Division Bench of Justices N. Kirubakaran and Abdul Quddhose agreed with two AIADMK cadre, who had filed a civil suit that “appropriate orders have to be passed by the court to safeguard the vast properties left behind by the late Chief Minister.”
Heir apparent
However, since the petitioners had not made Jayalalithaa’s niece J. Deepa and nephew J. Deepak parties to the case, the judges suo motu impleaded the siblings as respondents to the suit and directed the High Court Registry to serve notices, returnable by November 28, on them at their T. Nagar residence in Chennai.
The Bench permitted the counsel for the plaintiffs, K. Pugazhenthi and P. Janakiraman, to serve private notices on the second legal heirs of Jayalalithaa through all modes including e-mail, courier and WhatsApp. The judges wanted to know whether the siblings had taken any steps to claim right over the properties.
Attemped usurpation
The interim order was passed dehors the legal question regarding the locus standi of the plaintiffs to file the suit though they had claimed to be emotionally attached to the late leader and apprehended that some third parties were attempting to usurp her properties.
To buttress their claim, the plaintiffs pointed out that a Special Court in Bangalore had assessed the value of the properties owned by Jayalalithaa at ₹55.02 crore as on April 30, 1996. Since more than 22 years had elapsed since then, the present value of those properties should be ₹913.41 crore, they estimated.
Stating that Jayalalithaa was one of the directors of an estate at Kodanad in Kerala, the plaintiffs said, the mysterious death of a security guard at the estate had raised the necessity for the court to intervene in the issue and appoint an administrator to manage the properties left behind by her.
