Karnataka moves SC against Jayalalithaa’s acquittal in disproportionate assets case

New Delhi: The Karnataka government moved the Supreme Court on Tuesday challenging the May 11 judgment acquitting AIADMK general secretary Jayalalithaa and three others in the Rs 66-crore disproportionate assets case. Following this, Ms Jayalalithaa was sworn in as the chief minister of Tamil Nadu on May 23.

Karnataka government termed High Court’s order a farce and illegal, saying Jayalalithaa’s acquittal resulted in ‘miscarriage of justice’.

She is contesting a by-election from R.K. Nagar constituency on June 27. A single judge of the Karnataka high court, while acquitting Ms Jayalalithaa and three others on May 11, had relied upon a judgment of the top court in 1977 holding that it would not be an offence if the accused had disproportionate assets not more than 10 per cent of the known sources of income.

In its appeal running into over 2,500 pages the State pointed out that the excess amount of disproportionate assets of accused is more than 76 per cent (and not 8.12 per cent as per the HC judgment) if the grave error of calculation of the single judge is rectified.

Karnataka will argue that it was not given sufficient opportunity to represent the appeal by appointing a special public prosecutor. Mr. B.V. Acharya who was appointed pursuant to the apex court order of April 27 was given a day’s notice to file written submissions.