Jayalalithaa Was Convicted, Remove Portraits From Government Offices: DMK

Chennai: Contending that she had been convicted in a corruption case, the DMK today called for government schemes named after former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa to be renamed and portraits of her removed from offices. DMK Working President and Leader of Opposition in the Tamil Nadu Assembly MK Stalin also protested "the use of taxpayers' money for her 69th birthday celebrations" yesterday.

"Jayalalithaa was convicted (in the Rs 66 crore disproportionate assets case). Already there are some schemes in her name and the government should not allow new schemes to be named after her," he told reporters in Chennai.

He said Ms Jayalalithaa's portraits at the Secretariat, government offices should be removed. He said the DMK might move court if their demands were not met.
 Mr Stalin said he had raised his complaint with Chief Secretary Girija Vaidyanathan who assured him that he'll look into them.

Mr Stalin opposed advertisements commissioned by the state government on Ms Jayalalithaa's 69th birthday and criticised the participation of Chief Minister E K Palaniswami, his ministers and senior officials, including the Chief Secretary, in a tree plantation drive

Hours after Mr Stalin submitted the plea, former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister O Panneerselvam hit out at him for demanding the removal of portraits of late Ms Jayalalithaa from government offices, saying it smacked of political indecency.

"The women of Tamil Nadu will be outraged if there are attempts to remove the portraits of Amma. People will not forgive you. Stalin should not indulge in such useless activities and instead come forward to do some worthwhile work for the people. But he will not do anything for the people," Mr Panneerselvam said.

On February 14, the Supreme Court had restored a lower court order on convicting Ms Jayalalithaa, her aide V K Sasikala and two others, sentencing them to four years in prison for accumulating illicit fortune. The charges against Ms Jayalalithaa had abated since she had died on December 5, 2016 but the court had held that the criminal conspiracy was hatched at her Poes Garden residence in Chennai.

(With inputs from PTI)