Probe panel exonerates Jaya of land grab charge

A judicial commission that probed allegations of land-grabbing at Siruthavur in Kancheepuram district has absolved former Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa of involvement, but said there was illegal purchase of land assigned to the landless poor and dalits. It also said her close aide Sasikala was "not
directly involved", but her relatives were among the purchasers.



In a two-volume report tabled in the assembly on Thursday, retired high court judge KP Sivasubramaniam recommended that nearly 53 acres of land that were purchased by various buyers, including Bharani Resorts, a firm in which relatives of Sasikala were partners, should be taken back by the government.

In an action taken report, chief secretary KS Sripathi said steps would be taken to resume the land and distribute it to the landless poor from the scheduled castes and the scheduled tribes, but the decision was suspended due to the pendency of a related litigation in the Supreme Court. The land had been assigned to the landless poor under a government of India scheme in 1967, with a bar on its sale for 25 years.

However, the recommendation to take back the land will not affect the bungalow that Jayalalithaa frequently stayed in, as it was alleged that it stood on government (poramboke) land, which was outside the scope of the enquiry. T Chitra, director, Bharani Resorts, owner of the property, contended that the enquiry could only cover land given to the landless poor, and not poramboke land. She said she was prepared to face proceedings under the Land Encroachment Act. The government too agreed with the suggestion, and therefore the commission restricted its inquiry to the 53 acres of assigned land.

Despite clearing Jayalalithaa of any wrongdoing, the commission castigated her government for "glaring abuse of power" at the instance of Bharani Resorts in granting a patta without any enquiry. This was achieved, the report said, by posting a tahsildar who was prepared to oblige the company.