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Another Minister From Jayalalitha’s First Cabinet Convicted For Amassing Assets
The Madras High Court
A former minister in J Jayalalithaa’s first Cabinet between 1991 and 1996, V Sathiyamoorthy, has been sentenced to five years in prison for amassing Rs 83 lakh assets that were disproportionate to his known sources of income by the Madras High court. In the case that been going on for the last 21 years, his wife has been sentenced to under go a two-year jail term, reported Tamil daily Dinamalar.
Sathiyamoorthy is the sixth person in Jayalalithaa’s first cabinet to be convicted for possessing assets disproportionate to their known sources of income. Besides Jayalalithaa, T M Selvaganapathy, who later quit the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) and joined the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), was also convicted on similar charges. Last year, C Aranganayagam, who was the education minister during 1991-96, was convicted for amassing assets. The cases against these former ministers were filed after the DMK Government, led by M Karunanidhi, returned to power in 1996.
Justice G Jayachandran, admitting an appeal by the state Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption against a lower court discharging Sathiyamoorthy, said the magistrate had admitted evidences that were confusing from some of the witnesses to acquit the former minister and his wife. Income tax on these properties was paid only after the first information report was filed against him, the judge said.
The former minister and his wife have also been asked to pay a fine of Rs five lakh each. The judge refused to stay his ruling to allow the former minister and his wife to petition the Supreme Court.
Sathiyamoorthy was elected from Kadaladi constituency in Tamil Nadu’s Ramanathapuram district.
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