DA case: SC permits Sasikala to inspect documents

The Supreme Court today

permitted Sasikala Natrajan, a close aide of Tamil Nadu Chief

Minister J Jayalalithaa, to inspect certain documents filed by

the probe agency in the disproportionate assets case pending

against them before a Bangalore trial court.A bench of justices P Sathasivam and Ranjan Gogoi

while allowing Sasikala's plea said that the same shall be

completed within 21 days and the special court trying the

offence would determine the venue.The Apex Court, however, clarified that today's order

would not affect, in any manner, any part of the ongoing trial

or examination of the witnesses that has taken place so far.The court had on September 5 reserved its order after

hearing arguments by Sasikala's counsel on her appeal against

the Karnataka High Court ruling, which had concurred with the

trial court order that she was not entitled to the documents

which were not part of the charge sheet.Earlier on June 25, the apex court had refused to stay

the trial but had allowed her to place on record the relevant

material relating to her claim that she was not provided with

certain documents relating to the questions put to her in the

ongoing day-to-day trial.Jaya and others are accused of amassing

disproportionate wealth during her tenure as chief minister in

1991-96.On November 4 last year, the apex court had dismissed

Jayalalithaa's plea for exemption from personal appearance

before the trial court in Bangalore. The disproportionate assets (DA) case allegedly

involves accumulation of assets worth over Rs 66 crore by

Jayalalithaa between 1991 and 1996. The DA case proceedings were shifted out of Tamil Nadu

by the apex court in November 2003 following a petition filed

by DMK leader K Anbazhagan when AIADMK was in power. Jayalalithaa had said that the jewellery, silverware

and footwear were "over valued" by Tamil Nadu's Directorate of

Vigilance and Anti-Corruption and that she did not own all the

sarees confiscated in the case.