Karnataka ACB files chargesheet against 6 persons, including Jayalalithaa aide Sasikala
Bengaluru, Feb 3: The Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) has filed a chargesheet in a case relating to alleged irregularities and preferential treatment provided to V K Sasikala, the close aide of former Tamil Nadu chief minister late J Jayalalithaa, at the Central Prison here.
The ACB informed the Karnataka High Court that a chargesheet has been filed against six people, including two senior prison officials of Karnataka and Sasikala.
Sasikala, who was convicted in the multi-crore disproportionate assets case, had served four years imprisonment at the Parappana Agrahara Central Prison here. She was released from the jail in January 2021.
The Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi and Justice Suraj Govindaraj, which was hearing a PIL filed by K S Gita, a Chennai-based social worker and educationist on Wednesday, was informed that the chargesheet was filed on January 7, 2022 after the state government accorded sanction on December 30, 2021, for prosecution of two prison officials.
The petitioner had claimed that despite a report submitted by retired IAS officer Vinay Kumar, indicating that preferential treatment was given to Sasikala inside the prison, the ACB had not completed the investigation.
The two officials who have been named as accused one and two in the chargesheet are Krishna Kumar, who was the Chief Superintendent and Anitha, the Superintendent of the Central prison at Parappana Agrahara when the illegal facilities and preferential treatment were allegedly provided to Sasikala and her sister-in-law Ilavarasi, who was also serving a sentence in the prison.
Sasikala and Ilavarasi have also been named as accused in the chargesheet.
The court had earlier directed the government to take a decision on the sanction request forwarded to it by the ACB on July 15 last year.
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Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
