JOIN USThe Supreme Court on Friday refused to grant an urgent hearing on a PIL that sought to put on hold AIADMK leader V K Sasikala’s swearing-in as Tamil Nadu chief minister till it passed judgement in a corruption case against her.
The judgement in the disproportionate assets case against former chief minister J Jayalalithaa and Sasikala, as co-accused, has been reserved since June 7 and is expected to be delivered next week.
A bench headed by Chief Justice J S Khehar said “declined” when advocate G S Mani pleaded for urgent listing and hearing of the petition filed by Chennai-based Senthil Kumar, general secretary of NGO Satta Panchayat Iyakkam.
The counsel submitted that the matter was required to be heard on an urgent basis. The petitioner has sought restraint on Sasikala’s swearing-in after an apex court bench had on February 6 said that it would pronounce within a week the judgement in a 20-year-old disproportionate assets case.
‘Detained’ MP, MLA join OPS
O Panneerselvam on Monday drew more support as one more AIADMK MLA and an MP joined him, PTI reports from Chennai.
Madurai (South) MLA S S Saravanan and Madurai Lok Sabha MP Gopalakrishnan met Panneerselvam at his Greenways Road residence and extended their support.
With the arrival of Saravanan, the number of MLAs in the chief minister’s camp rose to eight (including Panneerselvam), even as 12 Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha MPs, including Gopalakrishnan, are backing him.
Saravanan said party MLAs “were being detained” at Koovathur resort and that he had given a slip by wearing a t-shirt and bermuda (shorts). “If a floor test is held today, Panneerselvam will win it. Both those, who have come to his side and those who have not, will vote for him,” he said.