IANS/New Delhi
In a breather for Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, the Supreme Court yesterday extended the suspension of trial in the disproportionate assets (DA) case against her till June 16.
An apex court bench of justice J S Khehar and justice C Nagappan will hold hearing on June 16 on Jayalalithaa’s plea that trial in the DA case should not proceed till the ownership of the immovable assets shown to be her alleged benami (undisclosed) possession was decided as directed by the Madras High Court.
On May 26, 2014, the apex court stayed the trial in the DA case involving Rs666mn relating to the period from 1991 to 1996 against Jayalalithaa and three others.
The court yesterday also issued notice on DMK (Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) leader K Anbalagan’s plea, seeking vacation of stay so that trial in the DA case against Jayalalithaa and others could go on uninterrupted.
Besides, the court gave a week to the Tamil Nadu vigilance and anti-corruption department to file their response to Jayalalithaa’s plea that trial in the DA case be put on hold till the claims over immovable properties by Lex Property Developer was decided by a Bangalore special court.
On May 26, the apex court bench of justice B S Chauhan and justice A K Sikri while staying the proceedings of a trial court in respect to DA case, said that civil proceedings relating to a claim by Lex Property on the assets allegedly shown to be undisclosed possessions of Jayalalithaa will go on.Jayalalithaa moved the apex court challenging the May 20, 2014, order of Karnataka High Court.
The Karnataka High Court rejected her plea seeking direction to the Bangalore based special court, trying the DA case, to first decide the claim of Lex Property over the assets being attributed to her and then take up the DA case against her.