Sasikala Gets a Grand Send Off in Chennai As 5-day Parole Ends

Bengaluru: Deposed AIADMK leader VK Sasikala, serving a four-year term in a corruption case, returned to the central prison at the end of a five-day emergency parole for visiting her ailing husband at a Chennai hospital.

Parappana Agrahara central jail Superintendent P S Ramesh said Sasikala returned to the prison at 5 pm on Thursday. Her 74-year-old husband M Natarajan had undergone liver and kidney transplant at a corporate hospital in Chennai.

Sasikala left Chennai on Thursday morning by a car. She halted at several locations before reaching the Bengaluru highway as party cadres gathered to greet her.

As soon as she left her house, her vehicle was stopped by women supporters, who did a huge arti and broke coconuts in front of the car. Teary-eyed women rushed to the front seat and screamed, "Chinamma, we will be waiting for you. Don't worry you will be the one to always win."

She had sought a 15-day parole, but was granted only five days with tough conditions, including that she would not involve in political or any other public activity or take part in party activities.

During the emergency parole, the 60-year-old leader was allowed only to visit the hospital where her husband was undergoing treatment and stay at the residence as mentioned in the parole application.

It was also stipulated by the prison authorities that she should not entertain any visitors either at her residence or the hospital and that she should not interact with any media - print or electronic.

Sasikala has been lodged in the Parapana Agrahara central jail since February this year after the Supreme Court upheld her conviction by a special court in a disproportionate assets case.

Her relatives Ilavarasi and V N Sudhakaran are also serving four-year jail terms in the case.

Sasikala's appointment as interim general secretary of AIADMK after the death J Jayalalithaa in December last year was declared as invalid last month by the party's general council meeting held after the merger of factions led by Chief Minister K Palaniswami and his present deputy O Panneerselvam.

Her visit to Chennai came at a time when her nephew and sidelined AIADMK leader T T V Dhinakaran and the ruling camp are fighting it out to get the two leaves symbol, which was frozen by the Election Commission.

(With PTI inputs)