Its denouement could lead to the cornering of the state’s political Houdini and Rasputin rolled into one – M Natarajan, husband of the state’s latest femme fatale – Vivekanandan Krishnaveni Sasikala.
This is due to an outrageous claim made a day ago.
The allegation emerged after the state’s CM – O Panneerselvam claimed that anti-India forces were at work during the Jallikkattu protests.
Currently Sasikala is the supremo of the AIADMK. But, the small print on her appointment document says her probation period will be in force till April this year.
The currently fizzled out Jallikkattu drama could lead to the arrest and prosecution of Sasikala for her dubious role during Jayalalithaa’s last 2 days in Apollo Hospitals.
The shocking pointers:
Tamil Nadu’s police headquarters is on one end of the arterial Beach Road. On the other end is Fort St George, the seat of power. If someone wants to believe that the entire state machinery was caught napping – including the police that is – when a crowd of over 5 lakhs jammed its capital and held it to ransom for nearly a week, he/she/they must be seriously joking!
The real story, however, lay elsewhere.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa Jayaram was officially declared dead on December 5 2016 rather suddenly, mysteriously and suspiciously. [1] The announcement was rather abrupt and rife with contradictions. It had come after a series of flip-flops triggering some sort of political vacuum.
The domination of the state’s political horizon’s skyline by Jaya’s personal female flunkey VK Sasikala as Tamil Nadu’s step mother began almost immediately thereafter.
January 12 2017 onwards, Jayalalithaa’s sudden death had acquired the status of a murder mystery.
The whole thing revolves around a key question:
So far, none has raised the query in a court of law. But, before long, someone will.
Sasikala has not answered that question posed in a roundabout method by The Times of India a few days ago.
Sasikala’s attempts to answer or choosing not to could lead her into the vortex of a legal whirlpool that could include a charge of murder – of none other than Jayalalithaa! Here is why:
Sasikala would have to produce a will executed by Jayalalithaa signed by the late CM in front of independent witnesses whose veracity would have to be established in a court of law. Else, Sasikala cannot legally continue to stay in Veda Nilayam, the official residence of the late CM.
The rules pertaining to wills and heirs, courtesy, The Hindu:
A WILL is the disposition of the assets made by a person during his/her lifetime intended to take effect after death. When a person dies without making a will, he/she is said to have died intestate, that is, the property is inherited by the heirs according to the law of succession.
When a person dies after making a will, it can be enforced only after a probate is issued.
A probate is identified as the copy of the will certified under the seal of the court of competent jurisdiction. No right as executor or legatee can be established unless a court of competent jurisdiction in India has granted probate of the will under which the right is claimed or has been granted.
Probate can be granted only to the executor appointed by the will.
A petition for the probate is to be filed in the court concerned along with the will.
Succession of a Hindu Female Dying Intestate Under The Hindu Succession Act
The Hindu Succession Act, 1956 and particularly its inbuilt Section 14 state the aspects of rights of a Hindu female over her property.
The property of a female Hindu dying intestate shall devolve according to the rules set out in Section 16. The could only go to:
- Firstly, upon the sons and daughters (including the children of any pre-deceased son or daughter) and the husband;
- Secondly, upon the heirs of the husband ;
- Thirdly, upon the mother and father;
- Fourthly, upon the heirs of the father; and
- Lastly, upon the heirs of the mother
The heirs of a female intestate ought to qualify as per laws that define Agnates and Cognates.
The order of succession among agnates or cognates, as the case may be, shall be determined in accordance with the rules of preference laid down hereunder:
Agnate and cognate relationship maybe categorized as follows::
Agnates are direct descendants and/or are related to the intestate by degrees of both ascent and descent.
Cognates are collateral descendants related to the intestate by degrees of both ascent and descent [father’s and/or mother’s siblings].
If none of these are found acceptable and applicable, the property would be taken over by the state [meaning Government of Tamil Nadu] and administered as a trust.
To continue staying in Veda Nilayam, the posh Poes Garden residence of Jayalalithaa worth a few dozens of crores of rupees, Sasikala has to produce a legal heir certificate proclaiming her [Sasikala] as the heir apparent.
If she fails to, the property would belong to the People of Tamil Nadu and hence, its control would be in the hands of the State – or the Tamil Nadu Government who shall appoint a special officer or executor of the property.
In the unlikely possibility of Sasikala producing one such piece of paper proclaiming her to be proper and legal executors of Jayalalithaa’s will, courts shall be constrained to demand answers for the following questions:
When and where was the will signed?
Who were the witnesses?
The will has to have either the late CM’s signature and/or Left Hand Thumb Impression – the affixing of either or both – being witnessed by persons sans any vested interest in the property as witnesses and/or those who have a vested interest – endorsing such a disposal of assets but have chosen of their free will to be left out from the option of being challengers of such a will.
Those challenging the will [if such a will exists at all] can seek such a forensic test. As a result, the date and time would be established to a specific day and hour of the ink meeting the paper – or in other words, the signature and/or LTI of the deceased CM with eyewitnesses attesting the veracity of the event.
The prognosis of such a route could result in metaphorical nails being driven into the hypothetical coffin of the fledgling ‘political’ career of Sasikala.
Any resident of Tamil Nadu can file a writ in the Madras High Court under Article 226 demanding to know the truth and also pray for the eviction of Sasikala from Veda Nilayam, where, in all likelihood, she is a mere squatter and an illegal occupant.
If a fig-leaf explanation – that Apollo Hospital doctors and/or those brought in from All India Institute of Medical Sciences and/or those from abroad were the disinterested eyewitness signatories, the next question would follow.
Press reports said Jayalalithaa discussed vital government decisions with top government officials from her sick bed at the Apollo.
Relevant excerpts from a ToI report published on September 27 2016 when Jaya was in hospital:
Jayalalithaa convened an hour-long meeting with the senior officials in her room on the interim directions issued by the Supreme Court on the Cauvery issue.
The chief minister was apprised of the directions of the court on the applications filed by the states and the court orders thereafter to release water to Tamil Nadu on three occasions, an official release said.
“The CM directed PWD minister, chief secretary P Rama Mohana Rao, PWD secretary S K Prabakar and Cauvery Technical Cell chairman R Subramaniam to attend the meeting on behalf of state of Tamil Nadu,” the release said. The meeting in Apollo Hospitals saw the participation of chief secretary P Rama Mohana Rao, advocate general R Muthukumaraswamy, advisor to government Sheela Balakrishnan, principal secretary I to chief minister K N Venkataramanan and secretary A Ramalingam.
This was the last time that reports clearly stated that officials met Jaya in her hospital room.
If the CM was in a fit state to conduct a meeting, she must have initialed the note and/or made notes on the papers presented to her [as she is often known to do].
The Madras High Court can summon those papers.
Jayalalithaa is said to have personally chosen the candidates for the 3 by-elections that were held in Tamil Nadu during her hospitalisation
On November 5, a Press Trust of India report said that Jayalalithaa’s health was showing signs of improvement, citing Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu.
Apollo Hospitals Chairman Prathap Reddy had said that Jayalalithaa has “completely recovered” and it is up to her to decide when to go home, the report added.
The party tickets for the by election had the LTI of the CM and AIADMK General Secretary.
How could the events that ought to be categorised differently under political, official and personal agendas –viz. issued election tickets, matters pertaining to the governance of Tamil Nadu and the disposal of personal assets respectively be clubbed together to attest a will be congruently concentric?
If the answer this query is in the affirmative, such persons could be subjected to sustained cross-examination by a battery of eminent lawyers in open court.
In what manner were such persons [if such a list of persons exists] more important than the Governor and other constitutional functionaries allowed to meet the ailing CM?
Sasikala’s husband M Natarajan – the obvious planner behind all this has a few flies in his ointment.
The most important ones:
He had been persona non grata at the Jaya household when the late CM was alive. How did he become such a big VVIP immediately after her death – and such an important one that he was one of the last few who placed wreaths on the body before burial – rubbing shoulders with the likes of Rahul Gandhi and Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu? Will any of the VVIPs provide an answer?
Natarajan’s statements indicate that it was Sasikala who saved Jaya’s bacon in the Disproportionate Assets’ case till the end. After Jaya’s death, she cannot be imprisoned for offences allegedly committed during her lifetime – if the Apex Court overturns the acquittal of the Karnataka High Court. If the Supreme Court agrees with the findings of Judge Kumaraswamy and his faulty calculator, rules in favour of Sasikala and other co-accused in the case, the queries about the will, testament and the probation would remain unaltered.
But, if the Apex Court agrees with the ruling of Sessions’ Judge DaCunha, Sasikala would end up in prison. The convicting authority being the SC, Sasikala will find it extremely difficult to obtain bail on the basis of an appeal – staying the judgement – provided such a leave for appeal is granted at all.
In all those scenarios, Sasikala’s chances of becoming CM through a by election or before as the case may be – would be binned.
In such a scenario and or through the will probation rigmarole, if Sasikala’s role in the Sudden Death is established prima facie, would the AIADMK legislators who were said to have overwhelmingly voted for her, agree to have a criminal-case-accused as the party GS?
A bigger can of worms are scheduled to be opened starting January 31 2017 – the ones about the ongoing Jallikkattu conundrum.
Those questions will be raised as the court hears the petitions for the bull-taming festival for one final time. It is bound to shock and awe even more.
On January 20 2017, Tamil Nadu was shut down on the issue of Jallikkattu protests. Schools, colleges, business establishments and government offices remained shut.
It was an ‘official’ shut-down.
Some question to be asked by the judges:
Who ‘authorised’ the shutdown of the entire state of Tamil Nadu on January 20 on account of the Jallikkattu protest?
How did a gathering that had swelled to over 500,000 gather in the arterial Beach Road bang opposite the police headquarters on the one end of the thoroughfare and the state secretariat on the other?
Was the police force blind till anti-national protestors gathered in enough strength to cause mayhem in Chennai?
[1]
The timeline of Jaya’s last days:
Tamil Nadu chief minister J. Jayalalithaa died on December 5 2016 at Apollo Hospital in Chennai. She had suffered a cardiac arrest on Sunday evening, more than 70 days after she was hospitalised for complaints of “fever and dehydration”.
In the two months or so between her hospitalisation and her death, secrecy had been maintained around her health status, apart from short updates from the hospital and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK).
While she was hospitalized, state finance minister O. Panneerselvam was officially allocated the portfolios of Jayalalithaa as an interim arrangement and the AIADMK launched a campaign on Twitter to quell speculation about her health. After her death, Panneerselvam was appointed chief minister.
Here are the updates that were released from time to time about Jayalalithaa’s health status since she was hospitalised. Most of these statements reiterated that the chief minister would be discharged in a few days.
22 September: Jayalalithaa was admitted with complaints of “fever and dehydration”.
23 September: The hospital confirmed that her fever was under control and the chief minister had resumed normal diet.
25 September: Doctors and administrators at the hospital denied rumours that Jayalalithaa will be flown abroad for treatment.
29 September: While it was rumoured that necessary evaluation tests were being carried out, Subbiah Viswanathan, chief operating officer of the Apollo hospital, said in a statement, “The honourable chief minister has been advised few days in the hospital for recuperative treatment.”
2 October: The hospital confirmed that Dr Richard John Beale, consultant intensivist at the London Bridge Hospital, was flown in from the UK to assess Jayalalithaa’s health status. Without revealing any details, the hospital also said that the treatment plan included “appropriate antibiotics and other allied clinical measures” to treat infection.
3 October: Another statement was issued. “The treatment plan including appropriate antibiotics, respiratory support and other allied clinical measures are presently being continued to treat the infection,” it said.
6 October: Another statement mentioned that the chief minister was making “gradual progress” and would require “longer stay at the hospital”.
8 October: Following this, it was announced that the hospital is treating her for “lung decongestion”. “All the other comprehensive measures including nutrition, supportive therapy and passive physiotherapy are underway,” the hospital said. Around the same time, it was also announced that a team of doctors from Delhi’s All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) were treating the chief minister.
21 October: A health bulletin said Jayalalithaa was “interacting and progressing gradually”. The update on 21 October was the last official health bulletin from the hospital authorities, until the one on Sunday night mentioned about her cardiac arrest.
13 November: Jayalalithaa in a statement released by AIADMK said: “I have taken a rebirth due to the prayers of the people and my party cadre. What can harm me when I have your love?”
18 November: Apollo Hospital chairman Prathap C. Reddy said Jayalalithaa is able to breathe on her own without respiratory support. Jayalalithaa is being kept on ventilator for 15 minutes daily so that “her lungs could expand” and continues to be kept at the hospital’s critical care unit to avoid infection, Reddy said.
19 November: The AIADMK said the leader was shifted to a special room from the intensive critical care unit.
22 November: Jayalalithaa thanks voters for electing her party’s candidates in polls.
25 November: Reddy says Jayalalithaa speaking using tracheostomy tube valve.
4 December: AIADMK says AIIMS expert team confirms Jayalalithaa has recovered completely. Later in the day, she suffers a cardiac arrest.
5 December: Jayalalithaa put on life support, dies at 11.30pm.
Incubation 
Dear Sir,
Excellent piece. But Deepa has made Sashikala’s task simpler by stating that there was nothing to suspect the treatment provided by Apollo Hospitals to Jayalalithaa. Hope her entry will dent the prospects of Sashikala-Natarajan and their coterie. However, Sashikala bowled a googlee by awarding posts to some former ministers shunned aside by Jayalalithaa. Sheila Balakrishnan resignation is also causing surprise, even though, her tenure concludes on March, this year. Will tomorrow’s AIADMK MLA meeting provide any opportunity for Shashikala, before Deepa’s entry. We can only hope against hope. Was paneerselvam consulted before offering posts t senkottayan, Karuppasamy Pandian, Nainar Nagendran and a few others? It is time for panneer to either hit out or get out. Keep up the good work.
Thanks and regards,
Venu
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To my knowledge, if OPS hits out, he will be kicked out. If he does not, he will be pushed around and then bluntly told to get out.
Knowing the coward that he is, he will try either of the 2 options:
[1] He will try to enlist the support of Modi, try to get action initiated against Sasikala on various issues. MLAs swearing by Sasikala will then opt to be on OPS’s side.
If the timing is a little awry, Sasikala will pull the plug – provided Modi actually supports OPS. If she does, Modi will then make it his personal business to finish Sasikala off.
[2]
OPS may choose to play it safe, agree to be the number two in Sasikala’s cabinet if and when she becomes CM.
If that happens, he will end up losing whatever support there is from Modi. Once Sasikala is sure of that, she will kick him out!
In a nutshell, OPS will end up being a loser all the way.
Nemesis, however, will catch up with Sasikala on those very counts, sooner or later – as she cannot hope to win any general elections on her own. If Sasikala can mastermind the fake Jallikkattu protests and then force Modi’s hand, Modi too can return the compliment with some other issue.
End of the day, sooner or later, it will be The End for Dravidian brand of politics.
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