Karnataka Public Prosecutor asks how Jayalalithaa amassed Rs 66 crores on Rs 1 salary

On Wednesday, Karnataka Public Prosecutor and senior advocate BV Acharya questioned the Supreme Court as to how Jayalalithaa, who took home a salary of Rs 1 a month for 27 months from 1991 to 1996, had disproportionate assets of Rs 66 crores.

A report in Deccan Chronicle states that the senior counsel argued before the Bench of Justices Pinaki Chandra Ghose and Amitav Roy that under the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act, the burden of proving the legal means of income was on the accused, but in this case they could not do so.

On Tuesday, the Bench had asked for a chart of the loans which had been taken from banks by the accused during the period in question. Acharya produced the chart and also showed how this money was treated as income by the trial court and High Court. Acharya also reportedly stated that the other accused had set up benami companies and acquired wealth disproportionate to income. 

Acharya also found fault with the acquittal of Jayalalithaa, Sasikala, Ilavarasi and Sudhagaran and stated that the trial court​ had come to the conclusion that Rs 53 crores was the disproportionate assets after accounting Rs 13 crores towards expenses. But the High Court had reversed the findings. He added that the single judge committed a grave mistake in totaling 10 items of loan by arriving at a figure of Rs 24,17,31,274 when actually on proper totaling, the same was Rs 10,67,31,274. Thus, it showed that that disproportionate assets was only 8.12 per cent of the income which was wrong, he said. 

He explained that according to the single judge, the disproportionate assets was Rs 37,59,02,466 and income Rs 34,76,65,654 and since the DA was only Rs 2,82,32,812 which is 8.12 per cent in excess of the income, the accused were acquitted. However, if the error in totaling alone is corrected then the DA comes to Rs 16,32,36,812 which is 76.70 per cent in excess of the income, he said.