First Decide Ownership of Cos in Assets Case: Jaya

BANGALORE: Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa has approached the fast-track court in Bangalore for the Rs 66.65-crore disproportionate assets case to first settle the ownership issue of all the private firms, alleged to be her benami investments , before proceeding with the main case.

In an eight-page application before the Special Judge John Michael Cunha, Jayalalithaa, her close aide VK Sasikala and J Elavarasi submitted that they will lose the opportunity to establish that they have no relationship with the said Tamil Nadu-based companies if the special court went ahead with arguments in the main case.

“In the event of the third parties (companies) proving their claim over the said properties, there will be substantial reductions in the alleged disproportionate assets,” the application from the three women said.

In order to press her case, Jayalalithaa - shown as accused number one in the disproportionate assets case registered by the Tamil Nadu directorate of vigilance and anti-corruption in 1997 - has drawn the judge’s attention to last month’s Madras High Court order. The court, too, favoured that the Special Court decide the ownership issue first by impleading the said companies in the case.

The High Court had held that if the firms succeeded in establishing their ownership, then the value of the assets held by them will have to be deducted from the account of the accused .

“Hence, interest of justice requires that the (HC) order dated April 2, 2014 is complied with,” Jayalalithaa’s application said and urged the court to postpone the hearing of final arguments till disposal of the claim applications related to the ownership of the companies.

Senior advocate B Kumar, appearing for the accused, objected to the prosecution arguing the main case before first identifying who owned the private companies , whose assets have been under attachment.

Special Public Prosecutor G Bhavani Singh, appearing for the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption , urged the court to dismiss the application on two grounds.

He argued that he was not a party in the case before the Madras High Court, and secondly, the Madras High Court itself lost its jurisdiction over the case after the Supreme Court transferred the case by an order on November 18, 2003. Judge Cunha has reserved his orders on Jayalalithaa’s plea for May 7.