PMK urges Karnataka government to obtain stay on Jayalalithaa's acquittal

BENGALURU: Pattali Makkal Katchi President G K Mani today met Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and urged his government to initiate the appeal process and obtain a stay on Karnataka High Court's "flawed" judgement acquitting AIADMK supremo Jayalalithaa in the disproportionate assets case.

"...Under the strength of this flawed judgement, Jayalalithaa will hurriedly be assuming the office of Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. It will harm people of Tamil Nadu. It will also make a mockery of justice. I strongly believe that Karnataka government should immediately initiate the process and obtain stay of the order before any further damage is done to the justice," Mani told reporters here.

Mani claimed the high court verdict acquitting Jayalalithaa has "glaring arithmetical error" relating to her disproportionate assets.

He said Jayalalithaa's total disproportionate assets was Rs 16.34 crore instead of Rs 2.82 crore as the High Court Judge C R Kumaraswamy has concluded.

This amounts to around 76.75 per cent and not merely 8.12 per cent as concluded by the judge in his May 11 verdict allowing appeals by Jayalalithaa challenging the trial court order convicting her.

He also said but for Special Public Prosecutor B V Acharya's hard work and excellent presentation, the case might not have reached the stage of conviction and punishment in the first instance itself, but all his efforts seems to have gone in vain following the acquittal.