<p>Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa will go down in history as the first Chief Minister to have lost her post twice in the wake of being convicted in a graft case.<br /><br /></p>.<p>Jayalalithaa, who was convicted in a disproportionate assets case by a special court in Bangalore today had suffered similar ignominy 15 years back.<br /><br />She had to step down in 2001 after a Supreme Court verdict termed her appointment as "unconstitutional" and maintained that she was not qualified to be a member of the legislature in view of her conviction for graft.<br /><br />The massive mandate that Jayalalithaa secured for AIADMK in the May 2001 elections could not be a licence to be the chief minister, the court had observed.<br />This time, she has been convicted in an 18-year-old graft case.<br /><br />Her latest conviction has come at a time when three Parliamentarians -- Rasheed Masood, Jagdish Sharma and Lalu Prasad were disqualified following their conviction in separate corruption cases.<br /><br />Masood had become the first MP to lose his Rajya Sabha seat last year after the Supreme Court struck down a provision that protects a convicted lawmaker from disqualification on the ground of pendency of appeal in higher courts.<br /><br />Lalu Prasad and Jagdish Sharma, both convicted in the fodder scam, were also disqualified as members of the last Lok Sabha.<br /><br />Masood's conviction was the first case after the July 10 Supreme Court judgement that struck down sub-section 4 of Section 8 of Representation of the People Act, under which incumbent MPs, MLAs and MLCs can avoid disqualification till pendency of the appeal against conviction in a higher court.<br /><br />The appeal has to be made within three months of the conviction.<br />Seeking to negate the SC verdict, UPA government had introduced a Bill in Parliament in the last Monsoon session.<br /><br />But following differences with the opposition, the bill could not be passed.<br />An ordinance on the lines of the bill was later cleared by the Union Cabinet on September 24 last to protect convicted lawmakers.<br /><br />But reversing its earlier step, the Cabinet on October 2 decided to withdraw the Ordinance as well as Bill in the wake of public outburst against it by Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi.</p>
<p>Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa will go down in history as the first Chief Minister to have lost her post twice in the wake of being convicted in a graft case.<br /><br /></p>.<p>Jayalalithaa, who was convicted in a disproportionate assets case by a special court in Bangalore today had suffered similar ignominy 15 years back.<br /><br />She had to step down in 2001 after a Supreme Court verdict termed her appointment as "unconstitutional" and maintained that she was not qualified to be a member of the legislature in view of her conviction for graft.<br /><br />The massive mandate that Jayalalithaa secured for AIADMK in the May 2001 elections could not be a licence to be the chief minister, the court had observed.<br />This time, she has been convicted in an 18-year-old graft case.<br /><br />Her latest conviction has come at a time when three Parliamentarians -- Rasheed Masood, Jagdish Sharma and Lalu Prasad were disqualified following their conviction in separate corruption cases.<br /><br />Masood had become the first MP to lose his Rajya Sabha seat last year after the Supreme Court struck down a provision that protects a convicted lawmaker from disqualification on the ground of pendency of appeal in higher courts.<br /><br />Lalu Prasad and Jagdish Sharma, both convicted in the fodder scam, were also disqualified as members of the last Lok Sabha.<br /><br />Masood's conviction was the first case after the July 10 Supreme Court judgement that struck down sub-section 4 of Section 8 of Representation of the People Act, under which incumbent MPs, MLAs and MLCs can avoid disqualification till pendency of the appeal against conviction in a higher court.<br /><br />The appeal has to be made within three months of the conviction.<br />Seeking to negate the SC verdict, UPA government had introduced a Bill in Parliament in the last Monsoon session.<br /><br />But following differences with the opposition, the bill could not be passed.<br />An ordinance on the lines of the bill was later cleared by the Union Cabinet on September 24 last to protect convicted lawmakers.<br /><br />But reversing its earlier step, the Cabinet on October 2 decided to withdraw the Ordinance as well as Bill in the wake of public outburst against it by Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi.</p>