Tamil Nadu govt not keen to move appeal over Jayalalithaa's residence

Chennai, Dec 21: The Tamil Nadu government has informed the Madras High Court that it was not keen to pursue the acquisition of late Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa's residence, the procession of which was handed over to her legal heirs by a single bench of the court.

Advocate General R. Shanmughasundram informed the division bench of the Madras High Court, represented by Justices Paresh Upadhyay and Sathi Kumar Sukumara Kurup, on Monday on a petition filed by AIADMK leader and former minister CVe Shanmugham against cancelling the single bench order.

A single judge of the Madras High Court Justice N. Seshasayee had questioned the reason behind the previous AIADMK government decision to take over the Poes Garden residence of the late Chief Minister 'Veda Nilayam' as her memorial while there was already a memorial in her name at Marina beach.

The division bench of the Madras High Court had also questioned the necessity for a second memorial while already a memorial was in the name of the late Chief Minister.

The Tamil Nadu Advocate General Shanmugasundaram while appearing for the government said that already a division bench of the Madras High court had dismissed a petition from two members of the AIADMK seeking letter of administration and there was no point in CVe Shanmugham, another member to re-litigate the matter. The AG informed the court to dismiss the petition of the AIADMK leader and former minister CVe Shanmugham.

Contending the stand taken by the AG, the council for CVe Shanmugham, Somayaji pleaded before the court that two memorials for a tall leader was not new in Tamil Nadu and cited the examples of Rajaji and Kamaraj being honoured with two memorials in Chennai city in a short distance from one another.

The court has reserved the orders after hearing pleas by the AG, the council for the petitioner as well as by the legal heirs of Jayalalithaa, J. Deepak, and J. Deepa.