SC stays for 3 weeks trial against Jaya in DA case

The Supreme Court today stayed for three weeks the day-to-day trial in the 18-year-old Rs 66.65 crore disproportionate assets case against Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa by allowing the plea of the Special Public Prosecutor (SPP), who has to undergo medical treatment.

A bench headed by Justice B S Chauhan considered the plea of SPP G Bhawani Singh seeking adjournment of the proceedings in the trial court on account of his illness for which he needed medical attention.

The SPP had approached the apex court against the order of the Karnataka High Court which had refused to allow his plea and dismissed his petition against the trial court order imposing a penalty of Rs 60,000 a day for seeking repeated adjournments in the trial and causing delay in the judicial process.

The trial court on March 14 had fixed the amount based on the fees the state government is paying the prosecutor to conduct the trial.

The apex court had on September 30 last year quashed the decision of Congress-led Karnataka government to remove Singh as SPP from the case saying it was a "malafide" decision triggered due to "switch over" of government in the state. He was appointed during the tenure of BJP-led government in the state.

The All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) Chief is accused of amassing Rs 66.65 crore between 1991 and 1996 when she was the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu.

The case was transferred by the apex court from Chennai to Bangalore in 2003 during Jayalalithaa's earlier tenure as Chief Minister for a free and fair trial.

Besides Jayalalithaa, three other accused in the case are Sasikala, Ilavarasi and V N Sudhakaran.