Tenure of Justice Arumughaswamy Enquiry Commission probing Jaya’s death extended again

The Commission has so far examined 154 witnesses, including late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa’s close aide, VK Sasikala.

NE NEWS SERVICE
CHENNAI, OCT 25

The tenure of the Justice Arumughaswamy Commission, which has been entrusted to probe the death of the former Chief Minister and AIADMK Supremo J. Jayalalithaa has been extended for another three months by the state government on Saturday.

This has been the ninth ninth consecutive extension. Jayalalithaa had passed away in Apollo Hospital on December 5, 2016. The government extended the tenure as the deadline given to the Commission ended on Saturday. The commission last received an extension for four months on June 24.

The Tamil Nadu government set up an inquiry commission, headed by retired judge Arumughaswamy, on September 25, 2017, since AIADMK party members raised suspicions over former CM J Jayalalithaa’s death. The Commission inquired more than 154 witnesses consisting of ministers, politicians, party members and family members of J Jayalalithaa’s close aid VK Sasikala.

As Sasikala is serving her jail term at Parappana Agrahara prison in Bengaluru in the Disproportionate Assets case, she submitted an affidavit to the Commission.

In April 2019, Apollo Hospitals had made an appeal to the Supreme Court to stop the proceedings of the Commission, alleging that the latter was working in a biased manner. Justice Arumughaswamy immediately urged the Tamil Nadu government to file a petition to revoke the stay. However, the case is pending in the apex court.

In this backdrop, on June 24, the Tamil Nadu government extended the tenure by four months. However, since the Commission once again sought for an extension, the state government has once again provided an extension, for the ninth time.

Meanwhile, the DMK president Stalin has long been promising to investigate the death of the former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa if voted to power in the 2021 Assembly election in Tamil Nadu. On August 18, the DMK president once again questioned the delay of the investigation conducted by the Arumughaswamy Commission.

Stalin also questioned the reason the single-judge commission could not come to a conclusion in the investigation that dragged on for three years.