The Tamil Nadu government on Monday extended the tenure of the Justice (retd.) Arumughaswamy Commission by four months, in the fourth such extension given to it. With its tenure lapsing on Sunday, the Commission had sought an extension to complete proceedings and finalise a report.
Following the Government Order, the Commission issued summons to Deputy Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam to depose before it on February 28, while seven doctors from Apollo Hospitals have been summoned for cross-examination on February 27.
Witness examination
The Madras High Court had, in the last hearing, said that the Commission was at liberty to proceed with examination of witnesses including the doctors related to the case. It is, however, not clear if the doctors will appear before the Commission on February 27.
The Deputy Chief Minister’s deposition is crucial as he had claimed that there were doubts about former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa’s death and that he was unaware of the treatment given to her, a charge that has been rebutted by Apollo doctors, the then health secretary J. Radhakrishnan and Health Minister C. Vijaya Baskar in their depositions to the Commission.
Mr. Panneerselvam was supposed to depose on February 19, but his lawyer filed an application the previous evening seeking an adjournment claiming that the Deputy Chief Minister had to attend to official work.
