Express News Service
BENGALURU: The trial court remanded all three convicts in the disproportionate assets case —AIADMK General Secretary VK Sasikala, Ilavarasi and Sudhakaran, foster son of former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa — to judicial custody on Wednesday evening.
This was hours after the apex court did not consider their application seeking four weeks time to surrender.
Rejecting the request for providing the special status (Class-A) in prison to all three accused, Judge Ashwathanarayana asked them to serve sentence like other ordinary convicted prisoners.
After Sasikala and Ilavarasi cited that they were suffering from diabetes, the judge observed that there are doctors in the prison to look after them.
The judge also made it clear that the convicts should serve sentence as per the verdict of the apex court which restored in toto the special court verdict.
Now they will serve a full four-year sentence, excluding the number of days they spent in jail while the case was pending before the courts. Sasikala was in jail for 35 days. Ilavarasi and Sudhakaran had spent 22 days in jail. They will also have to pay the fine of Rs 10 crore each as ordered by the apex court.
As the judge adhered to the prison rules, Natarajan, the husband of Sasikala, tried to appeal to the judge to accord special status, considering his wife is senior citizen and diabetic, but he was not allowed. The same was also conveyed to the judge through their counsels.
Anticipating law and order problem, the trial was shifted from the city civil court complex to 36th Additional Civil and Sessions Court in Parappana Agrahara.
Except for a few relatives and followers, no one was allowed inside the court. Even media was restrained from entering court premises.
