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TMI Blog2015 (5) TMI 463X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... on 13(2) of Prevention of Corruption Act and under Section 120-B of Indian Penal Code read with Section 13(1)(e) read with Section 13(2) of Prevention of Corruption Act and the appellant/accused No. 1 is sentenced to undergo simple imprisonment for a period of four years, and to pay a fine of Rs. 100 crores. In default to pay the fine amount, she shall undergo further imprisonment for one year - for the offence punishable under Section 13(1)(e) read with Section 13(2) of Prevention of Corruption Act and the appellant/accused No. 1 is sentenced to undergo simple imprisonment for a period of six months and to pay a fine of Rs. 1 lakh, in default to pay the fine amount, she shall undergo further imprisonment for one month - for the offence punishable under Section 120-B of Indian Penal Code read with Section 13(2) of Prevention of Corruption Act. Crl. A. No. 836/2014 is filed under Section 374(2) of Code of Criminal Procedure by the advocate for the appellant/accused No. 2 praying that this Hon'ble Court may be pleased to set aside the judgment and order of conviction dated: 27.09.2014 passed by the 36th Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge, (Special Court for trial of crimin ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... unt, he shall undergo further imprisonment for one month - for the offence punishable under Section 120-B of Indian Penal Code read with section 13(2) of Prevention of Corruption Act. Crl. A. No. 838/2014 is filed under Section 374(2) of Code of Criminal Procedure by the advocate for the appellant/accused No. 4 praying that this Hon'ble Court may be pleased to set aside the judgment and order of conviction and sentence both dated: 27.09.2014 passed by the 36th Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge, (Special Court for trial of criminal cases against Kum. Jayalalitha and others) at Bangalore in Spl. C.C. No. 208/2004 - convicting the appellant/accused No. 4 for the offence punishable under Section 120-B of Indian Penal Code read with Section 13(1)(e) read with Section 13(2) of Prevention of Corruption Act and under Section 109 of Indian Penal Code read with Section 13(1)(e) read with Section 13(2) of Prevention of Corruption act and the appellant/accused No. 4 is sentenced to undergo simple imprisonment for a period of four years, and to pay a fine of Rs. 10 crores. In default to pay the fine amount, she shall undergo further imprisonment for one year - for the offence punish ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ated: 27.09.2014 passed by the Special Judge and XXXVI Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge (CCH-37) at Bangalore in Spl. C.C. No. 208/2004 filed as Annexure-J in so far as the confiscation of the properties of the appellant. Crl. A. No. 22/2015 is filed under Section 454 Code of Criminal Procedure by the advocate, for the appellant praying that this Hon'ble Court may be pleased to set aside the order dated: 27.09.2014 passed by the Special Judge and XXXVI Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge (CCH-37) at Bangalore in Spl. C.C. No. 208/2004 filed as Annexure-J in so far as the confiscation of the properties of the appellant. 2. The private complaint filed by the complainant-Dr. Subramanian Swamy, President, Janatha Party, No. 1, Papanasam Sivan Salai, Mylapore, Madras-600 004, in Criminal Case No. 3238 of 1996, against Ms. J. Jayalalitha, Former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, 36, Poes Garden, Madras - 600 086, under Section 200 Cr.P.C. alleging offence punishable under Section 13(1)(e) of Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, reads as under: The complainant above named states as follows:-- 1. The Complainant is in active political life, having been a Member of Parliame ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. Having coming to know about the non-filing of Income-tax returns for years and the Income Tax Department sleeping over this, as a Member of Parliament filed an 'Unstarred question No. 2309 seeking an answer from the Rajya Sabha on 8.12.1992. As soon as the question was filed, the accused some-how came to know that the subject matter of that question relates to her Income-tax immediately rushed to file her tax returns for three years running on the same day, i.e. 20.11.1992. Subsequently, the complainant was surprised from the answer given to him in the Rajya Sabha to his 'Unstarred question No. 57, on 23.2.1993. The answer revealed that:-- Her Wealth during 1989-90 was ZERO Her Wealth during 1990-91 was Rs. 1.89 Crores Her Wealth during 1991-92 was Rs. 2.60 Crores Her Wealth during 1992-93 was Rs. 5.82 Crores And subsequent investigation by the Complainant revealed that: Her Wealth during 1993-94 was Rs. 21.33 Crores; and Her Wealth during 1994-95 was Rs. 38.21 Crores It is a known fact that the accused was receiving Re. 1/- (One Rupee only) as her salary as Chief Minister. Adding her grape garden produce in Hyde ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... LAND. The execution of General Power of Attorney authorising her business partner Sasikala to execute the necessary loan documents, getting the loan sanctioned the same day and the issue of drafts in favour of the Government simultaneously within ONE DAY speaks about the abuse of state authority in this regard, forcing the Bank Authorities to grant loan to the tune of crores on the security of the property proposed to be purchased which is unknown in the history of administration of banks. 10. The complainant states that in a number of cases, the Supreme Court has laid that "known sources of income" must be taken to mean "Sources known to the complainant", and not sources know to the public servant. Besides, once cognizance is taken of the complaint, the prosecution has to only show that the accused or some person on her behalf is in possession of pecuniary resources for which the public servant or the said some other person cannot satisfactorily account for and once that is established, it is the duty of the court to presume that the accused is guilty, unless the accused proves the contrary. The onus thus shifts to the accused. 11. The complainant states that the accused pers ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... plainant further states that though she is getting a salary of Re. 1/- per month, she had been giving donations in her own name to the "needy" and giving publicity to the same at the Government Cost. A list of such donations is enclosed. 15. The complainant further states that Ms. N. Sasikala is said to be the aid of the accused and described as 'unborn sister', she is the wife of Mr. Natarajan, who hailed from a lower middle class agricultural family, and who was in Government Service from 1976 to 1991 in the Information Department. He was once removed from services and reinstated without back wages and their only source of income was the salary which he had been receiving during the said aid period. The accused person Ms. J. Jayalalitha in league with Ms. Sasikala and her close relatives have accumulated properties and began to purchase properties after properties which are prestigious and assets given below are only a very negligible part of the total ill gotten wealth and properties acquired by the accused person as well as her business partner Sasikala and her relatives and even these are totally incompatible with the known sources of income of the accused Ms. Jayala ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... and therefore liable for punishment. 16. The complainant has thus established a prima facie case against the accused person Ms. J. Jayalalitha, the former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu for offences committed by her under the provisions of Section 13(1)(e) of the prevention of Corruption Act. 17. The complainant states that according to the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act, for taking cognizance of offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act against Public Servants, the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, sanction of the Governor of Tamil Nadu is necessary. But since the accused ceased to be the public servant and the offences committed by her were during the period when she was a public servant the sanction of the Governor is not necessary. 18. The complainant therefore prays that this Hon'ble Court may be pleased to take cognizance of this complaint privately filed by the complainant against the accused for offences committed by her under the provisions of Section 13(1)(e) of the Prevention of Corruption Act and render justice. Madras: Dated: &n ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... f Tamilnadu, Now residing at No. 36, Poes Garden Madras-600 086 8. Reasons for delay in reporting by the Complainant/ Informant: No delay. 9. Particulars of properties stolen/involved: Does not arise. 10. Total value of properties stolen involved. Does not arise. 11. Inquest Report/U.D. Case No. if any. Nil 12. F.I.R. Contents (Attach separate sheets, if required): The accused held the office of Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu during the period, June 24, 1991- May 9, 1996. She was a public servant during this period. She was receiving a salary of one rupee per month as Chief Minister. 2. Prior to June 1991, the accused was having a grape garden at Hyderabad, a residential house at No. 36, Poes garden, Madras-18, a house property at No. 212, St. Mary's Road, Madras-18, and some landed property at Cheyyar, North Arcot - Ambedkar District. 3. There is information that, during her tenure as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, the accused had acquired a large number of movable and immovable properties, constructed new buildings, and acquired pecuniary resources, which are all far beyond her known sources of income. Verification of the information disclosed th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... - (e) Plot & House (S.No.93.94/95) At Mannargudi Town, NQM dt. (Measuring 25035 sq.ft.) Rs. 6,00,000/- Rs. 8,90,05,000/- 5. The accused is found to be having two bank accounts, viz., S.B. No. 23832 and CA No. 2018, with Canara Bank, Mylapore, Madras, Huge inflows of cash are noticed in these accounts, the sources for which have to be probed. 6. The acquisition of all the above said movable and immovable properties worth about Rs. 15.52 crores is believed to be disproportionate to the known sources of income of the accused, for which she has to account satisfactorily. An offence under Section 13(2) r/w Sec 13 (1)(e) of the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 is disclosed. It is believed that more items of properties and pecuniary resources are likely to be unearthed by means of a through investigation. Hence a case has to be registered in accordance with law. 7. Accordingly, I am registering a case in Cr. No. 13/AC/96/HQ u/s. 13(2) r/w 13(1)(e) of the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 against the accused for the purpose of taking up investigation. Inspector General of Police Vigilance and Anti-Corruption, Madras-6 13. Action taken: Since the above report reveals c ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 6, Poes Garden, Chennai-86, came to be permanently accommodated by A1 there from the year 1988 onwards, and acknowledged by A1 as her friend-cum-sister (Udanpirvatasagothari). A2 continued to live with A1 at No. 36, Poes Garden, Chennai-86 till the year 1996. 3) A3 is the son of A2's elder sister Tmt. V. Vanithamani and Tr. T.T. Vivekanandan. He came to reside at No. 36, Poes Garden, Chennai-86 in the year 1992 while pursuing his studies at New College, Chennai, and stayed there till the first quarter of 1997. A1 had acknowledged and proclaimed A3 as her "foster son" and had conducted the latter's marriage with one Tmt. Sathiyalakshmi at Chennai on 07.09.1995 on a very lavish scale. 4) A4 is the wife of late Tr. V. Jayaraman, the elder brother of A2. The said Tr. V. Jayaraman was a Govt. Servant in the Civil Supplies Dept. and died in December 1991 due to electrocution while attending to works in the Grape Garden of A1 at Hyderabad. Following her husband's death, A4 came to live at No. 36, Poes Garden, Chennai-86 from the beginning of 1992. 5) A1 is the daughter of late Tmt. N.R. Sandhya who was acting in films during the 1960s. A1 was also acting in films during 196 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ving with A1 at 36, Poes Garden, Chennai, to the extent of Rs. 2,01,83,957/-. These includes properties acquired in the name of M/s. Jaya Publications, M/s. Sasi Enterprises and Namadu M.G.R. which had been floated by A1 and A2 with themselves as partners. The details of the properties are as listed in Annexure-1 hereto. 9) After 01.07.1991, the acquiring of assets by A1 had gathered momentum, and during this period, A3 and A4 also came to live with A1 and A2, at No. 36, Poes Garden, Chennai-86, which is also the official residence of A1 as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. During this period, A1 and A2 together are found to have floated several firms in the names of A2, A3 and A4 namely: i) M/s. J. Farm Houses ii) M/s. J.S. Housing Development iii) M/s. Jay Real Estate iv) M/s. Jaya Contractors and Builders v) M/s. J.S. Leasing and Maintenance vi) M/s. Green Farm Houses vii) M/s. Metal King viii) M/S Super Duper TV (P) Ltd., ix) M/s. Anjaneya Printers (P) Ltd., x) M/s. Ramraj Agro Mills Ltd., xi) M/s. Signora Business Enterprises (P) Ltd., xii) M/s. Lex Property Development (P) Ltd., xiii) M/s. Riverway Agro Products (P) Ltd., xiv) M/s. Meadow Agro ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... resources and properties which are disproportionate to her known source of income, which would constitute the offence of criminal misconduct as described in Sec. 13(1)(e) of Prevention of Corruption Act 1988, and A2, A3 and A4 facilitated A1 to commit the said offence. 11) There was thus a criminal conspiracy between A.1 a public Servant and her associates, viz., A2, A3 and A4, to acquire and posses properties and pecuniary resources by A1 in her name and in the names of A2, A3 and A4 and in the names of the various firms floated by them which are beyond the known sources of income of A1. Further, A2, A3 and A4 had, pursuant to the said conspiracy, held the said properties and pecuniary resources in their names, and in the names of the firms floated by them, on behalf of A1. Pursuant to the said criminal conspiracy, properties, expensive jewellery, etc., and pecuniary resources were acquired by A1 in her name and in the names of A2, A3 and A4 and in the name of various firms. As on 30-4-96, the assets thus acquired and possessed by A1 are found to be worth Rs. 66,44,73,573/- as set out in Annexure II hereto. These include the assets already with A.1 as on 1-7-1991 (as set out in A ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of income of A1 and for which she has failed to account and A2, A3 and A4 abetting A1, in the commission of the said acts by agreeing to hold the properties in their names on behalf of A1 and thereby A1 to A4 committed an offence punishable under Section 120-B Indian Penal Code read with Section 13(2) read with Section 13(1)(e) of the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 (Central Act 49/1988). 14)(ii) In pursuance of the said criminal conspiracy and in the course of the same transaction, during the said period, at Chennai and other places, A.1, being a public servant committed the offence of criminal misconduct by acquiring and possessing in her name and in the names of A2, A3 and A4 and in the names of the firms floated by them, pecuniary resources and properties which disproportionate of A1's known sources of income to the extent of Rs. 66,65,20,395/- and for which she had not satisfactorily accounted and thereby A1 committed an offence punishable under Section 13(2) read with 13(1)(e) of the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 (Central Act 49 of 1988). 14)(iii) In pursuance of the said criminal conspiracy and in the course of the same transaction, during the said period, A2, A ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... - Rathnavelu, PW. 32 - Baby, PW. 33 - Mathivanan, PW. 34 - Suresh, PW. 35 - Swaminathan, PW. 36 - Balasubramanian, PW. 37 - Ajmal Khan, PW. 38-Saleem Khan are the Sellers. PW. 40 - Gangai Amaran, Seller of land. PW. 41 - Mahavirchand, PW. 42- A. Janarthanam, who have sold the land to Sasi enterprises. PW. 43- S. Nageswara Rao, PW. 44- Shivaji Rao, who speak about filling up of pay slips. PW. 45 -S. Shankar, Chartered Accountant. PW. 46 - T.G. Gopinath, who speaks about property sold to A3. PW. 47 - K. Muthian, who speaks about various aspects of horticulture crops namely coconut, mangoes around the residence of A1 and also laying of pipes. PW. 48 -K. Thiyagarajan, Green Farm House-sold property. PW. 49 -S. Lakshmi Narasimhan, Manager of Sriram Investment Ltd. speaks about the interest amount of Rs. 29,32,583/- from 1-7-91 to 30-04-1996. PW. 51 -V. Amanullah Maraicoir, Seller of Lex property-A4. PW. 52 - M. Gandhi, who speaks about Ramraj Agro Mills Company- speaks about paddy grinding machine PW. 53 -R. Ashokan, who speaks about capacity of grinding tones of paddy everyday. PW. 54 - P.L. Deenadayalan does not speak anything about purchase. PW. 55- K. Manavalan, PW. 56- ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... double for the stamping because it is registered in the name of a firm i.e. River Agro Products Company Limited. He further deposed that the power of attorney was registered in his name on 20th and 21st of August, 1994 at Srivaikundam Sub-Registrar Office. Like this, power of attorney was registered in his name for 1,167.57 acres of land. After the power of attorney was registered for 1,167.57 acres of land on different dates for a sum of Rs. 23,35,040/- to the owners of the land. Commission was given to Pandiya Nesan in a sum of Rs. 2.92 Lakhs. He has received 1.16 Lakhs. Radhakrishnan said that Selvi. Jayalalitha, Sasikala, Sudhakaran have purchased the land. On 17.11.1994, he gave sale deed for 281 acres to power of attorney which was given to him. Deeds of five documents bearing Nos. 694/1994 to 698/1994 were registered. That on 22.12.1994, 8 sale deeds were registered through power of attorney. Documents were 811/1994 to 818/1994. Sale Deed was made for 507 acres. He further deposed that on 6.1.1994, he registered sale deed for 166 acres of land through his power of attorney. These documents bearing Nos. 9/1995 to 11/1995. He further deposed that on 21.2.1995, he registere ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... In that agreement, he did not write how land would be purchased, they wrote only the details of commission. After seeing the advertisement in Hindu, parties from Chennai contacted their relatives at Kerala and told details. Approximately Rs. 1,300/- was spent for Hindu Newspaper advertisement. Radhakrishnan and third accused came and told that they were ready to purchase. Along with him, Rajagopal, Radhakrishna, Pandiya Nesan and accused No. 3 went to Serakulam, Meerankulam, Vellakulam, Vebankulam, Manur and Kayatharu. When they first met, 5.53 acres of land was not sold. The 5.53 acres of land mentioned in Ex. P323 was purchased in favour the company. It is registered for Rs. 16,600/-. In Ex. P323, it is mentioned that the sale amount was received from Agro Products Company. General Power of Attorney Documents are Exs. P.325 to P.329. As a power of attorney holder, he had right to sell to Riverway Agro Products Company and other persons. He has received the sale amount in respect of Exs. P330, P339, P345, P350, P357, P363, P366, P377, P388, P396, P408, P419, P431, P443, P450, P456, P467, P472, P477, P488. In the month January, 1995, as a power of attorney holder, he registered a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Homes - One Crore fixed deposit on 6.3.1992- Rs. 31,05,444/- Interest. 7.3.1992- Rs. 25 Lakhs deposited by A2-Rs. 1,21,809/- -IT. Rs. 10,03,191/- - Interest. PW. 92 -Ketan Gandhi, Executive Director of Interface Capital Market(P) Ltd. PW. 93- James Fredricks, A3-issued cheque for Rs. 20 Lakhs, 20 Lakhs, 10 Lakhs- Transfer of shares Rs. 8,56,636/-. Rs. 20 Lakhs from A3. PW. 94-R. Lakshminarayanan, PA to Company Registrar-Lex Property, Riverway, Signora, Meadow, Ramraj, Super Duper TV, Indo-Doha. Income Tax Return-Lex Property, Riverway Agro Products, Signora, Meadow, Indo Doha. PW. 95- S. Balu, Senior Manager, Indian Hospital Corporation Ltd. Upto March 1996 then gave Rs. 3,27,250/- as Rents. PW. 96 - Raghuram and PW. 97- Anilkumar Reddy, Starting partners of Riverway Agro Products Pvt. Ltd.- firm was transferred to A3 and A4 Rs. 2500/-. Transfer of Meadow to A4. PW. 98-M. Velayudham During the year 1996-97, he worked as an Assistant Executive Engineer in Merina Division, Chennai. Dheenadayalan, Assistant Executive Engineer, Shanmugam, Assistant Engineer, K. Vijayakumar, Assistant Engineer, worked with him. As per the request of Anti-Corruption Police and as per the orders of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... each had two floors, each having two bedroom flats, ground floor, first floor and second floor. The other building had ground floor and first floor. In that one garage to park vehicles, one store room and few rooms to stay for small employees. Garage construction was completed and other buildings were not fully completed. Few wooden things were fixed and the remaining were stored. As the garage was closed, they took the measurements from outside and calculated the area. 305.36 meters compound was erected around the four buildings. The value of the compound wall, the incomplete four buildings, the building materials and the completed construction is Rs. 1,47,83,375/-. Electrical fittings were not included. That was assessed by the Electrical Engineers. The value is Rs. 4,75,701/-. Total value is Rs. 1,58,59,076/-. As the work was done during the year 1995-96, the assessment was done as per the year 1995-96. By enquiring the Security and nearby people, they confirmed the construction was done during the year 1995-96. He has given a report as per Ex. P.643. That on 29.10.1996 and 30.10.1996, they took measurements to assess the building at No. 1, Murphy Street, Akkarai Village, East ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... andard rates and schedule rates were decided by receiving the quotation and minimum quotation was taken into consideration. During cross-examination, he states as under: He has mentioned the age of the renovated building in Ex. P.645. He has deposed that the age of the renovated building is 15 years. The campus in which the building is situated is in a village (Ex. P.645). They took the Andhra Pradesh schedule rates. For new building, he took the price of the year 1995-96. This was furnished by Anti-Corruption Department. They came to know about the time of construction by Ramavijayan, agent of A-1. On that basis, it was decided that the construction was during 1995-96. With their experience, they can say the time of construction by seeing the building. They enquired the other people also. To find out about the foundation, they digged. By observing the colour change of the mixture, they ascertained the time of construction. During construction, the colour of the mixture would be cement colour. Apart from the mixture, they take the date of electrical connection. They did not get the sanction plan for the Grape Garden (Ex. P.645). They will get the electrical connection after many ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... years. In Hyderabad, they inspected four buildings. Among them, three buildings were constructed 15 years back. One building might have been constructed three months before the date of inspection. The assessment was not done either by practical or scientific method. They did not ask the PW. D Engineers of Hyderabad for furnishing Andhra Pradesh PW. D Price List. They did not take out the marble stones from the construction site to decide the price. Regarding the marble stone, they have not taken any writing from the marble merchants. They have not seen the thickness of the marble. They have not asked the expenses of doors from anybody. PW.-98 was recalled and re-examined by the learned Special Public Prosecutor and questions were posed as under: In chief-examination, he has stated that the building covered by Ex. P.641 was constructed during 1994-95. In cross-examination, he has stated that building was constructed 5 to 6 years back. Among the two versions, which version is correct? What he has stated in examination-in-chief is correct. In chief-examination building covered by Ex. P.643 construction work was done during 1995-96. But in the cross-examination, construction work w ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nam, who speaks about granting compensation of Rs. 14 Lakhs out of which Rs. 1,00,008/- contributed by A1 from her personal fund. PW. 111 -K.N. Achuthan, who speaks about payment made through cheque for Rs. 21,000/- to Sweet Meat Stall. PW. 112 - R. Venkatarama Upadyaya, who speaks about cheque issued. PW. 113 - Moshin Bijapuri, who took shop for rent from Sasi Enterprises. PW. 114 - P.V. Ravikumar, Manager-Subbarama Reddy Group of Construction. PW. 115- K. Mariappan, who speaks about machineries valuation-Anjaneya Printers- Ex. P665. PW. 116-A. Jayapaul was working as an Executive Engineer, Building Division-4, PW. D, in the year 1996. His Team evaluated six buildings. The ground floor of Building No. 21, Padmanabha Street, T. Nagar, had an area of 165.61 sq. meters. First floor had an area of 158.49 sq. meters. Second Floor had area of 12.49 sq. meters. Another Room plus toilet had area of 8.63 sq. meters. Building Plan was not provided to them. Price ratio was fixed by PW. D. Face of the building was fitted with ruby red granites. Sloped roof of the front portion was fitted with ornamental tiles. Flooring was done with polished high quality marble stones. Exquisite wooden ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... luated as per 1995-96 rate fixation list. Ex. P.669 is the valuation report and the value is Rs. 80.37 lakh. The team inspected the building at No. 19, Pattammal Street, Mylapore, Chennai. They considered only renovation work for valuation. Building basement area - 42.06 sq. meters. First floor area - 42.27 sq. meters. Second floor area 23.42 sq. meters. Flooring was laid with quality marbles. Bathrooms and toilets fitted with porcelain tiles. Elevation slope roofing fitted with ornamental tiles. Front compound wall was built with unpolished granite. Garage flooring was laid with ruby red granite. Rate fixation of PW. D applicable to 1993-94 was considered for valuation. Overhead tank was constructed. Electrical connections were redone. Ex. P.670 is the valuation report. Renovation cost was Rs. 8 lakh. Door No. 36, Poes Garden, Chennai: The team inspected the campus. The campus had main building, newly built five storeyed building, one two-storeyed building, security quarters inside a very high compound wall. Main building was renovated completely. Newly built area of the main building was 72.27 sq. meters (777.09 sq.ft.). Newly built area on the first floor was 49.12 sq. meters ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s. 48,427/-. There is no schedule rate for paints used inside and outside the building. The names of hardware shops cannot be specified. There is no schedule rates for Dolpur stones. There is no schedule rates for skilled labour. There is no schedule rate for grill gates. He valued the grill gates at Rs. 20,102/-. There is no standard rate for landscaped lawn. He does not remember with whom he checked the rates for calculating the value of lawns. It was done orally. He has taken down. He does not have the paper. He tore it after mentioning the rates in the valuation report. Value fixed at Rs. 20.43 lakh includes lawn. Rs. 16,800/- was fixed for footpath with broken marbles. Service charge was fixed at Rs. 1,68,675/-. Centering was not removed at certain places. Materials used for centering were damaged. Steel rods in the columns were rusted. Based on this, he concluded that the work was stopped about six months back. Pine logs used there looked older than six months. Work was stopped around April 1996. 5% margin can be given. They considered the schedule rates applicable to 1995-96. There is no item in the building which does not come under the schedule rates. Doors, windows were n ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... edule rates for non-skid tiles, white cement, synthetic enamel paint, chandelier fittings. Rs. 88,000/- was fixed for electrical goods. A few portions in the main building in the campus were newly constructed. Old buildings were renovated. Rs. 42,37,606/- was fixed for newly built area in the old buildings. Most of the sanitarywares were of Hindustan Sanitaryware. Other fittings and pipes were of Jaguar Company. Rs. 14,63,250/- is the expenditure incurred for carving down on the doors. Valuation is only for the doors fixed in the renovated parts of the main building. He checked the rates from Arya Bhangi who made door with carvings. He took the photographs. There is no evidence to show that the photographs are that of Poes Garden. The total outside area of the building is called its plinth area. The Chief Engineer has given the rates for the cost of 1 sq. meter every year. He followed the rates fixed for 1993-94. He followed the rates of 1992-93 for the two-storeyed building. He has fixed Rs. 42,63,000/- for two-storeyed building meant for vehicle parking. Rs. 10,56,000/- for security quarters. Rs. 6,95,000/- for compound walls. According to the building plan, the building would ha ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... .667 does not mention the length, height, weight of the brickwall. Quality of the brickwall is also not mentioned. The report does not mention the length, breadth and height of the concrete structures. Valuation was prepared according to the schedule rates of their Department. Length and breadth of the iron beam is not mentioned in the report. The sq. meter rate is fixed according to the schedule rate of their Department. The iron rods weighed about 500 quintals. The value for the piled up marble slabs was done after taking measurements and counting them separately. They have not seen the sanctioned plan. They have not enclosed the building plan along with Ex. P.668. They have not enclosed the schedule rate of their Department along with Exs. P.666 and 672. They did not seek the opinion of the Forest Department Officials to ascertain the nature and quality of wood. Measurements of frame structure, load bearing structures were not mentioned in Ex. P.668. Construction materials used for building No. 1 were not classified before valuation. The weight and rate of the crystal rods were fixed according to their own calculation. Ex. P.669 does not mention the structure of the ornamental t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rect. During cross-examination, he states among Ex. P.666 to P.672, he does not remember which report belongs to which building. PW. 117- R. Govindan, PW. 118 - S.R. Kapoor, PW. 119 - C.S. Raju, PW. 120- I. Nazurullah, who speak about machineries valuation-Anjaneya Printers- Ex. P665. PW. 121- R. Kannan, PW. 122- R. Sundararaj, PW. 123- R. Srinivasa Moorthy are the Officers of the Commissioner of Tax Department. PW. 124 - Ethindra Babu, Special Officer, Finance; he speaks about salary of Rs. 1 per month taken by A1. PW. 125 - Vasudevan, Assessing Officer. PW. 126 - Krishnamoorthy, Assistant Commissioner-Mahazar witness. PW. 127 -A. Rajeshwari, who speaks about Ex. P717-sale deed. PW. 128 -Balakrishnan, Assistant Secretary speaks about TNHB allotted plot to A3. PW. 129 - Namaji, who speaks about sales and repairs of watches Kani and Sons. PW. 130 - Maran, who speaks about assessment of watches. PW. 131 - Jerald Wilson, Quality Controller, Tamil Nadu Leather Development Corporation, who speaks about valuation of slippers and shoes. PW. 132 - Fortune Eban Leelavathy, District Registrar, Central Chennai District Registration Office. He speaks about Registration of Purachi T ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ndustries Development Corporation. He speaks about cancellation of allotment of four granted land. PW. 152 - Selvaraj, who speaks about that A1 took permission for MLA office, subsequently, vacated. PW. 153 - V. Baskaran has deposed that he was working as Superintendent Engineer in Tamil Nadu Public Works Department, construction Division (Taluk-I) and retired on 30.6.1999. From 1993 to 1997, he worked as Executive Engineer in PW.D. Construction Division at Tanjoovur. Since he worked in Public Works Department for about 35 years, he had good experience about buildings, expenditure on buildings and assessment of buildings." An order was issued by PW. D Chief Engineer on 20.11.96 to assess buildings in the premises of Ramraj Rice Mill in Vandal Playa, Nannilam Taluk, A.T. Panneer Selvam District. Kaliyappan, Assistant Executive Engineer, Karunakaran, Assistant Engineer, Manian, Junior Engineer and Rajaraman, Electrical Engineer were appointed to assist him. From 27.11.96 to 29.11.96, they inspected all the buildings and took measurements. Then, they prepared the assessment. On the basis of the respective year of construction and the schedule rate of PW. D, they prepared the assess ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... whom they contacted to assess and whose permission was sought to inspect the building. On the first day a Police Inspector came with them, court order was not issued to them to inspect the place, nor any of the group members applied to get the court order. During the 3 days of inspection, no untoward incidents occurred. When asked for the plan, they told them that they did not have the plan and the plan had not been approved. He asked for the plan orally and they also replied orally. It was not done in writing. They have not prepared the notes of proceedings for that. He does not know that which Panchayat Union that building comes under. He did not find out in writing about the plan approval of the building either from the village officer or Panchayat Union. They have not done any test in the laboratory. They did only a Physical test. They informed them that they could appoint engineers in writing on behalf of them, they did not inform them in writing. Mr. Kaliyappan, Mr. Karunakaran and Mr. Manian are Civil Engineers. They have not brought any metallurgy engineers with them. The electrical engineer belonged to our Public Works Department only. He did not work under his personal su ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tems. Cement and Steel do not come in that list. The rate for cement and steel will be fixed by the Superintendent Engineer. From his experience, he knew the rate of 40 items fluctuate. Every year, the PW. D fixes the rates. Every financial year, i.e. every March the rates are fixed and the PW. D will issue order to implement it from April of that year. The fixed rate will be followed up to March next year. Every year the rates will be published in writing by the Superintendent Engineer. The published reports, regarding the rate fixed by the Superintendent Engineer was not enclosed with Ex. P.822. The fluctuation in the open market for these 40 items will not affect this report. If once the rate is fixed, this should be followed for the whole year. The wages given to petty labourers, Mason and the other workers will differ from place to place for male and female. He did not see the property tax receipt to find out the owner of the building. In Ex. P.822, in page 17 they have mentioned about the places, from where sand, jally and brick can be obtained. The quarries for jally and sand are recognized by the Revenue Department. He told him that on this basis only the above mentioned t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... . It is not necessary also. The assessment report Ex. P.822 is not sent to the Superintendent Engineer. He submitted this personally to the Prevention of Corruption and Anti Corruption police. He gave the report Ex. P.822 to the Assistant Superintendent, Tanjoor, Ex. P.822 was not sent to the Chief Engineer. But he was informed that it has been sent to the police. The Chief Engineer only ordered them to prepare the assessment. He has not tested the sand, chemical test was not done with sample taken by digging and scrabbling the walls. The items which were not in these 40 items in PW. D rates are also found in these buildings. The rates of the items which are not under the 40 items will be fixed separately by the Superintendent Engineer and gave him more list. As per that only he assessed. Depending on the structure of the building and the nature of the usage, sand, cement and jally mixture and the ratio of the mixture will differ. In Ex. P.822, he has given the ratio of the mixture only on assumption. He has mentioned the ratio of mixture, as followed in practice. The ratio of mixture for wall, and floor are given from his experience and observation. He does not know that how many ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... thers in carbon. The rate of electrical fittings were also fixed at the rate of the PW. D. The wires having different gauge measurements were used. He has considered the PW. D rate for each wire. Except out 4 engineers they have not taken any other persons for inspection. The guest house which he has mentioned in the 1st examination is the guest room in the 1st floor. When he was working there, he has seen the buildings constructed during 1995-96. When he went that side. Ex. P.822 he has mentioned the year of constructing that building. While construction, he has not gone and seen them personally. With local enquiry and his experience he has mentioned the age of the buildings in Ex. P.822. The local enquiry was not taken in writing by the concerned persons. He does not know that the hours of the enquired persons, fathers name, age and address. He has not taken anything in writing from the village officers. Like that, he has not taken anything in writing from either the P.D.O. Officer or Panchayat Board President. Ex. P.822 did not have the details about who has seen which building, took measurement for assessment. The letter came from the Chief Engineer is X-20 (This letter was ta ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... . They did not assess either, through test in laboratory or through scientific methods. The order for the assessment is also not submitted. The Chief Engineer sent a letter to send the assessment report on 7.1.97 to them. The assistant Engineer Rajaram who has come with them to assess the electrical work was the junior most engineers from his department. The assessment made by the electrical engineer should be approved by his higher officer after verification. But in Ex. P.822, the report was neither verified nor approved by the higher officer of the electrical engineer. Their engineers had neither the right to assess nor value the electrical works. They have not mentioned the name and the details of the persons who were enquired to find out the date of construction of those buildings. The people whom they enquired told them different values. Our assessment report was prepared on the basis of information received from outsiders. The inspected buildings might have been constructed before 1991 also. The new buildings which they inspected were incomplete and these new constructions might have been constructed a few months before our inspection. The PW. D price assessment list is not e ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ted in my examination in chief is correct. Q: In 2000 October the deposition recorded read over then accepted it as correct and signed it likewise in 2002 also your deposition was read over by the court you accepted as correct then signed it? A: During the first examination i.e. in the year 2000 my deposition has been read over accordingly I accepted it as correct and signed it but, so far as the deposition in the year 2002 is concerned I was not permitted to go through the deposition, I was asked to sign the same in the presence of the learned counsel for the accused." It is not correct to say today on account of compulsion I have given such evidence. PW. 154 -Kamal Batcha. He supplied provisions to A1 and A2. PW. 155 - Subburaj, Manager of Keerthi Lal Kalidas and Company Jewellers- He speaks about the valuation of jewellery and important things. PW. 156 - Mohandas, Company Secretary, M/s. Kothari Orient Finance Limited. He speaks about fixed deposit. PW. 157 - S.R. Elangovan speaks about Namadhu MGR. PW. 158 - G.N. Gopalarathinam, Chartered Accountant. PW. 159 -Rajagopalan has deposed that in the year 1993, he was promoted as Assistant Chief Registrar of Registration Dep ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... cents Sirudavur 1,90,000.00 Ex. P122 11.85 acres, Sirudavur village 1,90,000.00 Ex. P138 11.28 acres, Sirudavur village 1,90,000.00 Ex. P123 10.86 acres, Sirudavur village 1,80,000.00 Ex. P139 10.78 acres, Sirudavur village 1,70,000.00 Ex. P124 7.44 acres, Sirudavur village 1,10,000.00 Ex. P905 3.30 acres, Sirudavur village 82,500.00 Ex. P906 34 cents, Eenjamabakkam village 1,07,000.00 Ex. P907 34 cents, Eenjamabakkam village 1,07,000.00 Ex. P908 34 cents, Eenjamabakkam village 1,07,000.00 Ex. P79 Luz Church road, Mylapore 1,87,000.00 Ex. P324 53 acres, 66 cents, Serakulam village 1,07,320.00 Ex. P75 3 acres, 51 cents, Karumkuripallam Village 1,40,000.00 Ex. P76 4 acres, 52 cents, Karumkuripallam Village 1,80,000.00 Ex. P77 4.15 acres, Karumkuripallam Village 1,64,000.00 Ex. P78 4.15 acres, Karumkuripallam Village 1,64,000.00 Ex. P771 1.50 Acres, Siradavur village 39,000.00 Ex. P46 4830 sq.ft. thiruvankulam nagar colony, Ambattur 1,90,000.00 Ex. P125 37 cents, vettuvakami village 1,10,000.00 Ex. P96 5.80 acres, Payyanur village 1,00,000.00 Ex. P97 3.52 acres, Payyanur village 1,95,000.00 Ex. P98 5.28 acres, Payyanur vil ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ,19,640.00 Ex. P184 8.32 acres, Oothukudu Village 83,200.00 Ex. P190 86.5 acres, Oothukudu Village 86,500.00 Ex. P153 1.8 acres, Oothukudu Village 10,800.00 Ex. P154 1.8 acres, Oothukudu Village 10,800.00 Ex. P155 1.80 acres, Oothukudu Village 18,000.00 Ex. P156 11.25 acres, Oothukudu Village 1,12,500.00 Ex. P197 6 acres, 40 ½ cent 64,050.00 Ex. P105 1219.79 sq.meter, 1/1 Luz Avenue, Mylapore 9,00,000.00 Ex. P106 1219.79 sq.meter, 1/1 Luz Avenue, Mylapore 9,00,000.00 Ex. P107 1219.79 sq.meter, 1/1 Luz Avenue, Mylapore 9,00,000.00 Ex. P108 1219.79 sq.meter, 1/1 Luz Avenue, Mylapore 9,00,000.00 Ex. P109 1219.79 sq.meter, 1/1 Luz Avenue, Mylapore 9,00,000.00 Ex. P110 1219.79 sq.meter, 1/1 Luz Avenue, Mylapore 9,00,000.00 Ex. P135 11 cents, Neelankarai Village 6,80,000.00 Ex. P136 11 cents, Neelankarai Village 8,20,000.00 Ex. P717 26740 sq.ft house, V.O.C Nagar, Thanjavoor 11,00,000.00 Ex. P207 7 acres, 11 ½ cents. Oothukudu Village 71,150.00 Ex. P214 15.71 acres, Oothukudu Village 1,57,100.00 Ex. P221 9.50 acres, Oothukudu Village 95,000.00 Ex. P910 20.33 acres, Oothukudu Village 1,45,000.00 Ex. P911 20.89 acr ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s. PW. 177- Shanmugha Sundaram, who speaks about loan application of Tmt. Gunapasini for a sum of Rs. 3.75 Crores. On request of Gunapasini, they changed the loan liability to A2, A3 and A4 since they became share holders. PW. 178 -Arumugam, Press Photographer. He speaks about the photos taken in the marriage of A3. He received a cheque of Rs. 54,660/- by A1. PW. 179 -Srihari has deposed that he was running a jewellery shop in the name of Vummidi Bangaru Chetti Trust at No. 11, Nageswara Rao Road, Panagal Park, T. Nagar, Chennai. He was one of the trustees in that jewellery shop. His brother V. Sudhakaran is also another trustee. They have been running the above jewellery shop since 1972. Now and then they would submit Income Tax returns of Ummidi Bangaru Chetti Trust. They were doing business of gold jewellery, diamond jewellery, silver jewellery and silver vessels 75% of the jewellery, they were selling by placing orders from outside. The letter V.B.C.D. will be embossed on all the jewellery sold from their shop which indicates their shop names. In addition they would give gold to M. Ramalingam of Kovai and he would make jewel according to the design they specify. Likewise wou ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... alalitha. On 31.3.92, he prepared 3 pages jewel assessment report for Selvi Jayalalitha. On 31.3.91, he prepared 2 pages jewel assessment report for Tmt. N. Sasikala. On that same date he prepared 1 page schedule-2 jewel assessment report for Tmt. N. Sasikala on 16.1.92 he prepared 2 pages jewel assessment report for Tmt. N. Sasikala. Schedule-1 refers to gold jewels Schedule-2 refers to diamond jewels, and also precious diamond stones jewels." Approximately 58 items jewels which figured in his assessment certificate were in the list of jewellery from seized Selvi Jayalalitha's house by police. Ex. P1010 contained 4 pages certificate which he assessed jewels for Selvi Jayalalitha on 31.3.1991. In that 62 items jewels are there. It was belongs to schedule-I category. Ex. P1011 contained 2 pages report which he assessed 24 items for Selvi Jayalalitha on that same date. It belongs to schedule-II category. Ex. P1012 contained 2 pages assessment report which he assessed 26 item jewels for Selvi Jayalalitha on 16.1.92. Ex. P1013 contained 3 pages report which assessed 41 item jewels for Selvi Jayalalitha on 31.3.92. Ex. P1014 contained 2 pages assessment report for 46 item jewels as ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ame as item 32 in Ex. P703 Item No. 09 in Ex. P1013 is same as item 45 in Ex. P703 Item No. 15 in Ex. P1013 is same as item 28 in Ex. P703 Item No. 21 in Ex. P1013 is same as item 149 in Ex. P703 Item No. 22 in Ex. P1013 is same as item 120 in Ex. P703 Item No. 23 in Ex. P1013 is same as item 152 in Ex. P703 Item No. 26 in Ex. P1013 is same as item 464 in Ex. P703 Item No. 29 in Ex. P1013 is same as item 135 in Ex. P703 Item No. 31 in Ex. P1013 is same as item 134 in Ex. P703 Item No. 33 in Ex. P1013 is same as item 224 in Ex. P703 Item No. 37 in Ex. P1013 is same as item 55 in Ex. P703 Item No. 38 in Ex. P1013 is same as item 54 in Ex. P703 Item No. 39 in Ex. P1013 is same as item 49 in Ex. P703 Item No. 40 in Ex. P1013 is same as item 59 in Ex. P703 Item No. 09 in Ex. P1011 is same as item 122 in Ex. P703 Item No. 11 in Ex. P1011 is same as item 121 in Ex. P703 Item No. 16 in Ex. P1011 is same as item 143 in Ex. P703 Item No. 17 in Ex. P1011 is same as item 461 in Ex. P703 Item No. 22 in Ex. P1011 is same as item 159 in Ex. P703 Item No. 23 in Ex. P1011 is same as item 201 in Ex. P703" During the Cross-examination, he has deposed that he was graduat in B.Sc. G ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... lver and diamond also. If the jewellery is used with great care and caution and used occasionally it will retain its shine and there will be no wear and tear. There will be not even a minute depreciation. They cannot determine accurate weight of stone studded and they could not determine the exact weight of gold and stones separately. He did not give the documents relating to Ex. P1010 to Ex. P1016 to the Prevention of Corruption Department Police. After he evaluates the jewels in Ex. P1010 to Ex. P1016. On the dates mentioned in the documents, while tendering evidence in this case he did not examine Ex. P703 with reference to assessment report. He has not seen Ex. P703 so far. Further while he was tendering evidence in the court he was not shown any jewels. When Nallamma Naidu recorded his statement they did not ask him to compare the assessment report Exs. P1010 to P1016 with Ex. P703 and asked him to take statement. Further without seeing the jewels and pursuing the details mentioned in Ex. P703 he cannot state whether they include in the assessment report. Generally gold's standard cannot be fairly determined by merely looking at it. Its standard can be assessed only appro ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... were the value shown on the day of assessment. To determine the quality of diamond there are fine cutting and medium cutting methods. If it is a fine cutting it will not be less than 57 facets, it is less than 57 facets it is medium cutting. To measure the weight of diamond there is a separate weighing scale and to measure the weight of gold there is a separate weighing scale. The diamond studded gold jewels will have more of gold than the diamond in terms of weight. The diamond studded gold jewellery will be weighed in toto and the approximate weight will be assigned to gold and diamond. Some shops in Chennai sell gold jewels less than estimation price. The fluctuating prices of gold day to day applicable to only new jewellery and not applicable to old jewellery and applies to silver and diamond also. The old gold jewels value in terms of cost would depend on jewels model purchasers standard, sellers emergency. All the gold smiths would not come forward to buy old gold jewels. The jewels relating to Exs. P1010 to P1016 shows only approximate weight of gold and diamond. But in Ex. P698 and 698 approximate weight of gold and diamond is not shown. The diamond jewelleries, is price c ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... state vide Ex. P1162. He further deposed that grant of loan of Rs. 12,46,000/- in favour of JS Housing vide Ex. P1172. He has further deposed that grant of loan of Rs. 50,00,000/- in favour J Farm House vide Ex. P1211. He has further deposed that grant of loan of Rs. 2,50,00,000/- in favour Accused No. 2 - Sasikala vide Ex. P1260. He has further deposed that grant of loan of Rs. 1,57,00,000/- in favour Accused No. 3 - V.N. Sudhakaran vide Ex. P1330. He has further deposed that grant of loan of Rs. 1,65,00,000/- in favour Accused No. 3 - V.N. Sudhakaran/Ramraj Agro Mills Ltd. vide Ex. P1354. He has further deposed that grant of loan of Rs. 17,85,274/- in favour Mahalakshmi Kalyana Mantapa (V.N. Sudhakaran) vide Ex. P1357." He speaks about the transaction that has been carried out by accused No. 2-Sasikala, companies and firms. An amount of Rs. 1.50 Crore was given as loan under OMTL scheme to Jaya Publications. Ex. P.1114 is the credit voucher dated 18.06.1992 for the fixed deposit of Rs. 1 Crore made in the name of Miss. Jayalalitha. They have sanctioned 90% loan on the basis of the deposit. He has deposed that bank has sanctioned a term loan of Rs. 25 Lakhs to Sri. V.N. Sudhakara ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ct a Kalyana Mandapa at Door No. 149-150, TTK Road, Chennai. They have asked for a loan of Rs. 157 Lakhs. The Head of their bank has sanctioned a loan of Rs. 133 lakhs. Ex. P.1329 is the letter sent by the regional office asking us to release the first installment Rs. 45 Lakhs. A term loan or Rs. 45 Lakhs has been released and credited on 25.9.94. Ex. P.1341 is the application dated 22.12.94 signed and submitted by V.N. Sudhakaran to open a current account in the name of the company Ramraj Agro Mills Limited. There is a credit entry for Rs. 8,60,000/- by transfer on 7.1.95. Ex. P.1349 is the application signed and submitted by V.N. Sudhakaran to open OCC-19 account in the name of Ramraj Agro Mills Limited. One Sri. Gandhi has signed in Ex. P1350 dated 19.2.1994. Ex. P1351 is the letter signed and submitted by V.N. Sudhakaran asking for a loan of Rs. 200 Lakhs. Ex. P.1352 is the sanction ticket received from their head office sanctioning a loan (OC) of Rs. 165 Lakhs. Ex. P.1353 is the copy of the telex message sent from the central office asking to transfer the sanctioned loan of Rs. 165 lakhs to the same company's account in the Thiruvarur branch of Indian bank. The partner of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... irs in connection with V.N. Sudhakarn's marriage. He gave the cheque for Rs. 1,30,000/- as advance amount. He asked to deliver the tables and chairs to MRC Nagar and MGR Film City. Mr. Naveen - Deputy Manager of Adayar Par Sheraton Hotel asked him to supply decorative articles and clothes. These requisitions were sought in connection with the marriage of V.N. Sudhakaran. Cheque for a sum of Rs. 57,250/- was given and the same was issued by Selvi Jayalalitha on 6.9.1995. The balance amount of Rs. 2,65,000/- was with them. During the cross-examination, he states that certain articles were rented-out for the purpose of party function. PW. 187 - R. Pulikesi was working as DIG of Registration in Registration Department, Trichy. He gave certified copies of documents to Anti-Corruption Police i.e. Jaya Publication's Form-I dated 2.2.1990 which was registered on 5.2.1990. Ex. P1288 is the certified copy of that form given by him. Copy of registration is Ex. P1289. Registration number of Jaya Publication is 152/1990. Sasi Enterprises consists of partners viz., Jeyaraman Jayalalitha, Vivekanandan, Sasikala. The date of Form-I is 1990. The registration date is 21.5.1990. Ex. P1290 i ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... stones were available at Mudharabad itself. After finishing the work, wages of Rs. 1,50,000/- was received from Vijayan at Poes Garden. He has supplied marble stones from their company for a building at Alatthur, Bahabalipuram Road which belongs to former Chief Minister. He gave bill of Rs. 1,35,000/-. The amount was not paid. They told him to supply marble stones to the second accused to Sengamalar Thaayar, Women's College, Mannarkudi. He has delivered the marble stones. It was cost about Rs. 8,50,000/-. He was referring to a document of the year 1995. He has received the above amount of Rs. 8,50,000/- by cash in installments. Apart from this, he has received a cheque signed by Ilavarasi for the supply of marble stones for a Siruthavoor building and for the work done at Hyderabad. He has received a cheque signed by Jayalalitha. Ex. D4 is the receipt of Rs. 3,93,360/- (6,000 sq.ft. of Indo Italian 'C' quality at the rate of Rs. 55/- per sq.ft. including taxes) dated 10.9.1995 for having supplied the marble stones to Ilavarasi. In the same way, Ex. D5 is the receipt of Rs. 3,27,800/- (5,000 sq.ft. of Indo Italian 'C' quality at the rate of Rs. 55/- per sq.ft. in ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s the value of the suit cases. There were about 214 suit cases. The total value of 214 suit cases is Rs. 3,71,945/-. While assessing the value of the suit cases, two witnesses were present. He put the value for those VIP suit cases prevailed at that time. That value was put approximately. He has not taken into consideration about wear and tear and the resale value of the suit cases. He does not know about the resale value of the suit cases. PW. 194-Ramesh, worked as a Manager (Administrative) in Vijaya Auto Sales & Services (P) Ltd., Poondhamalli Bye-pass Road, Chennai-56. The company used to service the vehicles such as Tempo Travelers, Trax Jeep, Matador Van etc. He serviced the Trax Jeeps, which come from Former Chief Minister Selvi Jayalalitha's house from 1992 to 1994. They serviced the Trax Jeeps bearing Nos. TSK-5850, TSJ-7299, TSJ-7200, TN-09-B-6966, TN-09-A-9295. For that they gave credit bills amounting to Rs. 1,62,283-95/- They gave cheque of Rs. 44,341-35. PW. 195-Narayana Rao, working as an Accountant to Late Mr. Subburama Reddy, former MP. He was one of the Directors of the company floated by Mr. Subburama Reddy. The name of the company was Signora Business Ente ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... used to tell him through intercom the details about which Bank and in which company how much money should be deposited. Sasikala used to send the amount either in suitcase or bag through the domestic servants. She used to send Bank challan book and he used to fill it in favour of the account which Sasikala told and deposit the money in the bank. Ex. Nos. 1123, 1124, 1139, 1190, 1299, 1300, 1301, 1302, 1303, 1304 bears his signatures. Apart from these, he used to go to Canara Bank, Mylapore Branch and fill the challans and remit the money by putting his signatures. Those works will be done by himself and Vijayan. Vijayan also used to go to the Bank for remittance of money. During that period, building was under construction at Poes Garden. They used to arrange for buying required things for construction. When he was working in Poes Garden house, Sasikala, Mr. Sudhakaran, Tmt. Ilavarasi, Vivek S/o. Ilavarasi, Satya Lakshmi W/o. V.N. Sudhakaran were permanently residing with Jayalalitha only. Sasikala used to issue all the orders in the said house. Relatives of Sasikala like Sundaravathanam brother of Sasikala his wife Santhana Lakshmi, their daughters, Prabha, Anuradha, Srethaladevi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 68. Accused Nos. 2 and 4 affixed their signature on the document of Green Garden Apartment Company. Ramvijayan and himself are witnesses to that document which is Ex. P1369. PW. 71 - Radhakrishnan wrote a small sheet and handed over to him to give it to either Sasikala or Sudhakaran. They used to give money. Susaritha, Manager of Indian Bank, Abhirampuram, used to come frequently to Poes Garden to meet Sasikala and Sudhakaran. She used to come to discuss about the bank loan. They made Sundarrajan, husband of Tmt. Sucharitha as shareholder in Spic Jyothi dealership. Sasikala paid necessary amount of Rs. 1.50 lakhs on her behalf. Mr. Kanniappan, owner of Lakshmi Marbles used to visit Poes Garden with regard to supply of marbles. Mr. Vijaya Shankar, the Architect also used to come to the house. Mr. Sathiyanarayanan from Unnudi Bangary Chetty Store used to come to Poes Garden to meet Sasikala with regard to jewellery. PW. 179 - Mr. Srihari used come often to Poes Garden. He belongs to Unnudi Bangary Chetty Store. PW. 228 Rajasekaran and PW. 213- Balaji the Auditor used to come to Poes Garden." During cross examination, he states that ledgers were not maintained for wages paid to the w ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ef Examination is correct. PW. 199-A.G. Krishnamoorthy was running a company in the name of A.G.K. Travels in Gangureddy Road, Egmore, Chennai. PW. 200-K.P. Muthusamy is the retired Chief Engineer. He has deposed that after retirement, he has registered in "Fellow of Institute of Valuers Organization". He has the capacity of assessing buildings. Jawahar told him to come to the Chief Minister's residence, because a marriage was going to be held, so many arrangements should be made. Jawahar took him to the first floor and introduced him to Sasikala. Jawahar told her that he had come over there to look after the pandal work. He has deposed that the pandal was made with coconut leaves for the marriage functions. The pandal work was going on in MRC Nagar. Vijaya Shankar, architect gave him a plan for pandal and stage arrangements. The contractors Rajappa Nadappa, Rajagopal Ramachandra Nadar and Kumareshan Nadar were also present there. In MRC Nagar, he got introduced to PW. D contractor Mr. Ethiraj. 5 main pandals to perform the marriage ceremonies with the measurement of 70 ft to 750 ft were put up. They were constructed with coconut leaves. Coconut leaves pandals with the measur ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... pandals, big and small, he only told which pandals should be done by whom. He did not supervise the work done by Art Director Gopinath. Ramkumar is one of Shivaji Ganesan's son. He does not remember on which date Rs. 1.50 Lakhs was sent from Poes Garden. He does not remember who brought that money and gave it to him. He does not know personally, how much money was spent in MRC Nagar for the marriage. PW. 201- C.K.R.K. Vidyasagar was working as an Officer at Canara Bank, Mylapore Branch, since 14.6.1995. Ex-chief Minister Selvi Jayalalitha and Tmt. Sasikala had maintained savings bank account in their Branch. Savings Bank account No. 23832 was opened with Rs. 25,20,396.45 paise. This amount was deposited in cash by Selvi J. Jayalalitha on 16.4.1991. Rs. 1 crore was transferred to Canfin Homes. On the same date Rs. 86,23,941/- was transferred to Head Office. The above deposit yielded Rs. 1 crore on maturity. The interest amount, i.e. a sum of Rs. 1 crore which has been given to Canfin Homes was also credited to savings bank account. Amount remaining in savings bank account was deposited in Kamadhenu deposit scheme vide deposit No. 249/94. Rs. 75 lakhs was transferred to this ac ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... akhs and Rs. 5 lakhs was transferred on 15.4.1995 and 15.7.1995 respectively through cheques. From Sasikala's account 2196, a sum of Rs. 25,000/- was transferred to the account of Signora. From Sasikala's current account 2196 to Namadu MGR's current account No. 1952, a sum of Rs. 1,93,000/- was transferred. On maturity, as per the request of the third accused, fixed deposit along with interest totaling to Rs. 5,12,229/- was credited to current account No. 2220. He has deposed about three demand drafts for Rs. 9 lakhs Rs. 9 lakhs, and Rs. 6,50,000/- in the name of Interface Capital Pvt. Ltd. Vehicle loan of Rs. 3,50,000/- was sanctioned to Sudhakaran. Tmt. Elavarasi's SB account number is 35389. On 23.10.1991, Namadu MGR account No. 1952 was transferred from Kellis Pura@ Branch to their Branch. Cash were credited for about 313 times by S. Balaji, S. Bhaskaran, Rama Vijayan, Krishnan." In this account, money was credited several times through clearing. The money is transferred from some other accounts to this account and credited in this branch. Date Name Amount 04.01.1992 Jaya Publication 2,36,000.00 06.01.1992 Jaya Publication 15,000.00 03.01.1992 By tra ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... edits and debits made in the account amounted to Rs. 62,57,986.25 paise. The credited money in bank account after 25.9.1991 was the amount accrued through interest of Rs. 1,92,072.10. The same amount was there in the account on 31.8.1991 also. From 1.4.1995 to 29.2.1996, the interest was credited in the above account and the amount is Rs. 2,05,152.06 paise. On 25.7.1991 Rs. 1,00,000/- was given to Rajaram from the above account. PW. 203-P.M. Krishnamoorthy was working as a Revenue Officer in Chennai Corporation. He was acquainted with handwriting of Damodaran. Damodaran has signed 1998 voters list. Ex. P1961 is the original copy of voters list of 1000 light constituency. In Ex. P1962, it is mentioned that Jayalalitha is residing at Poes Garden, Chennai-86. Sasikala, Ilavarasi, Bhaskaran and Sudhakaran and other eight members were residing in the said address and all these things are indicated in the voters list. They are certified by M.A. Ismail, Voter Registration Officer and Revenue Officer, Chennai Corporation. Enumerators used go to the voters' house and gave card. When the enumerators went to the house, the family members who were not in the house, were verified with the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... this value, they have considered the price list of PW. D for the year 1995-96. On that, Inspector Karunakaran gave him request to assess the pipes found there. On 15.3.1997 from 10.30 a.m. to 1.00 p.m. the Agricultural Engineer - Gopalan, Assistant Engineer, High Ways - Shanumuga Sundaram, himself, P.K. Natarajan and Ravi Manoharan have inspected the pipes. In that place, one portion was named as Fan Guard Division and another portion was named as Ward Pakkam. High Density PVC Pipes were laid there. Water sprinklers had been fixed there as well. Ex. P1965 is the report. As per this report Rs. 5,80,315/- was the value of the pipes." During the cross-examination, he states that he has prepared the notes of the proceedings and they have destroyed the same. The structure could have been constructed two or three weeks prior to their inspection. They did not enquire about the quality of the pipeline and price. They did not ask the receipt for the purchase of pipelines. They did not dig and see the pipelines for assessment. They did not prepare the notes of proceedings for the pipeline assessment. During the re-examination, question was put to him that whether the chief-examination is c ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... at credits and debits of Rs. 11,28,251/- have been caused-out. PW. 209-Manickavasagam was working as Branch Manager of Indian Bank, Abirampuram Branch, Chennai. He issued the certified true copies of the Bank register, for the bank accounts mentioned below: Ex. P.1022- Jaya Publications Enterprises OMDL Account Register Copy. Ex. P.1011-In the name of Thirumati. V. Gunabooshani N.K. No. 1173- Bank Register True Copy. Ex. P.1106-Jaya Finance Pvt. Ltd. NK No. 1171 Register Copy. Ex. P.1109-Tmt. J Ilavarasi NK No. 1171 Register Copy. Ex. P1111- In the name of V.N. Sudhakaran CA No. 1068 Register Copy. Ex. P1117- In the name of Fresh Mushrooms NK No. 1071 Register Copy. Ex. P1136-J.J. Leasing and Maintenance NK No. 1059 Register Copy. Ex. P.1138-In the name of J. Vivek Se. Ka. No. 4110 Register Copy. Ex. P.1160- On J. Real Estate N.K. No. 1050 Register Copy. Ex. P.1170 J.S. Housing Development N.K. No. 1062 Register Copy. Ex. P.1189- Green Farm House NK No. 1058 Register Copy. Ex. P.1207-J. Farm House N.K. No. 1054 Register Copy. Ex. P.1226-Anjaneya Printers Pvt. Ltd. NK No. 1053 Register copy. Ex. P.1248- Jaya Contractors and Builders NK No. 1049 Register copy. Ex. P.1 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... struction Ledge folio 1140 has been initiated by Thiru Janardhana Rao. He did not sign as Manager in Ex. P.1981. There is difference in account of Ex. P.1998 and the un-indexed Sea Enclave ledger folio 1161. There is difference in the account copy of Ex. P.2010 and the un-indexed Namasivaya Housing Development ledger folio 1155. There is difference in the account copy of Ex. P.2016 and the un-indexed Sakthi Construction ledge folio 1149. There is difference in account copy of Ex. P.2022 and the un-indexed oceanic construction ledger folio 1167. There is difference in account copy of Ex. P.2028 and the un-indexed Green Garden Apartment ledger folio 1170. He does not personally anything regarding the account in Ex. P.1106. He does not know personally anything account disputes. He issued Ex. P.1160. No date is mentioned below his signature. He issued certified copy of Ex. P.1255. Date is not put below his signature. While issuing the document copies, there is no practice of putting date below certification in the bank. He denies the suggestion put to him that dates were not mentioned and issued copy in order to help the Police. This witness was also re-examined. During the re-examina ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... . Adding the interest as total of sum of Rs. 3,78,065/- had to be paid by her as tax. This tax was paid on 20.11.1992 along with the challan she filed the returns. As per his assessment, the balance to be paid was Rs. 86,34,866/-. During the cross-examination, he states that generally the political leaders would be given momentous and gifts when they participated in public meeting and programmer. He knows that Selvi Jayalalitha has participated in many programmes as a political leader and a party leader. Nobody would use the gold-plated silver shields and swords for daily use. He calculated Rs. 80,65,250/- as the taxable income of Selvi Jayalalitha for the year from 1.4.1990 to 31.3.1991. Moreover, he decided Rs. 79,89,946/- as the income from the other sources for that year. The decision he took about the gifts were confirmed in the first appeal. He does not know if in the second appeal filed against his order, whether his order was dismissed by the Tribunal. The organization by name Natyakala Nikethan has shown Rs. 29 Lakhs as credit in its Balance Sheet and he has agreed for the same. Except the gifts, he agreed on the income shown by Selvi Jayalalitha from other sources. PW. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... her. This explanation was not accepted. He passed the assessment order of the 1st accused for the year 1989-90. On 16.11.1992, the 1st accused filed the return as per Ex. P2131. In this Rs. 25,200/- was shown as income for that year and Rs. 7,00,000/- as agricultural income by the 1st accused. When he reviewed, the weight and value and jewels mentioned this year were found to be more than the previous year. That is 220.09 carats diamonds 4312.300 grams gold jewels found were from the previous year. The total value for this is Rs. 30,08,818/-. Explanation sought was submitted and not accepted. Rs. 98,85,300/- was decided as the total property value of the 1st accused, and Rs. 37,454/- was charged as property tax. Returns were filed for the assessment year 1990-91 as per Ex. P.2135/-. Rs. 8 Lakhs was shown as agricultural income Rs. 9598/- was paid as TDS. Rs. 61,459/- as self-assessment tax. He reviewed the property tax returns filed for this year by her. When he reviewed, 412-20 carat diamonds, 8385.350 grams gold jewels, valuing Rs. 59,87,007/- were found to be more than the previous year. Apart from this, 550 Kilograms of silver things, valuing Rs. 35,54,650/- were shown more th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tion, he handed over all there articles to the officers of the Prevention of Corruption Department. Prabhu, s/o Shivaji Ganesan also invited him personally for this marriage. As per that on 6.9.1995, he performed the musical programme for one hour. About 25 to 30 persons were in the orchestra. He did not charge any amount for that programme. During the cross-examination, he states that he considered it as a privilege to conduct the music programme. He did not ask for remuneration. PW. 215 - A. Selvaraj was working as Income Tax Director (Exemptions) in Chennai from August, 1995 to June, 1998. He only heard the appeals preferred against the orders passed by some Income Tax Officers. Selvi Jayalalitha preferred appeal, against the orders passed by Seetharaman and some Income Tax Officers relating to 1987-88, 1988-89, 1989-90, 1990-91, 1992-93 and also orders passed by Srinivasan for 1991-92. He clubbed all the Income Tax assessment orders into one as all the points raised in the appeal were of similar in point of law and in facts. The appellants were represented by N.A. Palkivala, Senior Counsel and Rajasehkar, Auditor. After hearing and perusing the documents, he passed a common o ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 992 1991-92 is filed on 21.11.1992 1992-93 is filed on 23.11.1992 He did not accept the claims which came under the category of gifts and presents. Gifts and presents do not incur the income tax. Aggrieved by the same, the appellant has preferred appeal before the Appellate Tribunal-II. In appeal, his order has been reversed on several occasions, it has also been confirmed. Gift articles are not shown in the Income Tax returns format, it is only shown in the wealth tax format. Question: Accused No. 1 voluntarily disclosed the gifts, cash and jewels to the Income Tax department. What do you say about this? Ans: Particular category's source has to be shown differently for income tax and wealth tax. In both cases of taxes, if a person suppressed about a particular category, later it can be detected and income tax can be assessed and the same time, it cannot be detected. If the particular category is shown in the returns for the same regularized then Income Tax cannot be levied. So the category which is shown in wealth tax returns cannot be taken as the category shown in the income tax returns. Those categories are shown in the wealth tax returns, but those categories were tak ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... at he registered the original documents of Exs. P2149, 2150 and 2151. PW. 218 - V.N. Soma Sundaram himself and his wife Muthulakshmi sold the land. They have received the sale amount mentioned in Exs. P2149 to 2151 (Rs. 1,39,000/- Rs. 1,02,000/- and Rs. 1,79,400/- respectively). During 1985, Ganapathy took Rs. 3 lakhs as loan from Selvaraj in connection with contract work. PW. 219- R.S. Usman Khan has taken shop No. 9 for rent. He took the shop for rent since 1.2.1996. For this, he has paid Rs. 45,000/- as advance. Monthly rent of Rs. 4,500/-. All these were paid through cheques only. Sasi Enterprises' representative came and gave cheque to him. During the cross-examination, he states that he handed over the copy of the agreement to the police. He did not obtain the receipt for having paid an advance of Rs. 45,000/-. Since he has paid through cheques, he did not receive the receipts. PW. 220-Thiruthuva Raj has deposed that he has been working in the Public Works Department for the last 22 years. He was working as an Assistant Executive Engineer (Elecl.). His qualification was B.E.(Elecl.). He has good experience in valuing the electrical fittings in the buildings. He was wo ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n in his report. The details are like this important old building, camp office, dish antenna room and new multi-storey building. For all these, he gave separate details. In that report, Selvaraj and he affixed their signatures. The report given by them is Ex. P.2152. According to these two generators (a lift with the capacity to draw six persons) air conditioners, refrigerators, televisions, decorative electrical lamps were there in the house. Apart from this, what all the articles were there in the house. He has mentioned in his report in detail. According to his report, the total electrical devices value in the said house is Rs. 1,05,25,000/-. During the cross-examination, he has deposed that to inspect the property at Ciruthavur, the Asst. Executive Engineer, Sivalingam, an Assistant Engineer (Civil) were went to the said place. For assistance, Selvaraj, the Asst. Engineer came along with him. The Vigilance Engineer did not come to Ciruthavur. His assistant and he inspected the electrical devices from morning 9 am to evening 5 pm. While they were inspecting, they took notes now and then. They both inspected only the electrical devices related articles. They did not go into the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rrived at. In the Cross-examination, he has deposed that Ciruthavur is the first place that he inspected. They inspected Ciruthavur for 2 or 3 days. Four or five days later they went to Paiyanur for inspecting buildings. They inspect the Paiyanur building in a day. The Paiyanur buildings are in one campus. After that, they went to Anjaneya press for inspection. Four days after the inspection of Paiyanur buildings, they proceeded to Anjaneya buildings. They inspected Anjaneya Press i.e. in the 1st week of December 1996, they inspected the Poes Garden building. They inspected the Poes Garden building for two days. Their team consisted of himself, his Assistant, Assistant Engineer Thiru Selvaraj, Administrative Engineer Thiru. Swarnam, Assistant Engineer (Civil), Thiru. Senthil Kumar who inspected the Ciruthavur, Paiyanur and Anjaneya press buildings. The team that inspected the Poes Garden consisted of him, Asst. Engineer Selvaraj, Administrative Engineer Thiru. Jayapal, Asst. Executive Engineer. The timings they inspected the buildings every day were from 9 am to 11 am, 11.30 am to 1.30 pm, 2.30 pm to 5 pm. All of them did the work as one team. In their team, Thiru. Swarnam is the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... mentioned his assessment in his report after an oral enquiry. He saw the diesel pump set prepared the estimations for very urgent works. Regarding electricity, the PW. D guidelines have been revised twice after independence. The last time it was renewed from 1980 to 1985. He has not written the details of the items pertaining either to the PW. D schedule rates or the shop rates in his report. As far as Paiyanur buildings were concerned, the electricity supply was in working condition when he was inspected but he did not mention this in his report. He enquired about 6 to 7 shops about chandeliers in Tenampet. He had drawn out a picture of the chandelier when he made a note and so he took this to Tenampet shops while making enquiries. The names of the shops are Crystalite and Modern Height, but he does not remember the names of other shops. He did not take down the notes of the chandeliers in writing from the shops. He enquired generally the rate of the chandeliers differ from year to year. There is always a discount for bulk purchase. After observing all things, he gave his assessment in his report, but he has not mentioned in writing that. He has observed all these things and the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... . Jayapal asked them to do. Thiru. Jayapal is the Administrative Engineer. About a month and ten days after the investigation of the Ciruthavur building, they inspected the Poes Garden building for two days. Both the days the advocate of the building owner was there. From what the others were saying gathered that the advocate was a close associate of the owner. He did not come to know this directly from the advocate. They did not receive any Court order to go and inspect these buildings. He knew that the Poes Garden house belongs to Ex. Chief Minister Selvi Jayalalitha. Thiru Jayapal orally told him and took him to the house. He did not get anything in writing. The Chief Engineer has the power to appoint and take necessary actions. The Chief Engineer did not give him any order in writing to inspect the Poes Garden. After inspecting the Poes Garden, he did not send any detailed letter to the Chief Engineer. When they inspected the Poes Garden, the Electrician Velagiri was with them. This information was not mentioned in Ex. P.2152. In Ex. P.2152 they have not taken his signature. He inspected the Poes Garden house on the words of his higher authority Thiru. Jayapal. When he inspecte ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ems only they have mentioned the brand name. The 128 and 129 items were pump sets. For that, the brand name was not mentioned. The item 108 is diesel generator. For that, he put Rs. 6,55,000/- as the value rate, but he did not mention the brand name. For that also he did not mention the brand name. When they are taking the note, they won't value the value the articles. After verifying the rates in the market, they have prepared the value assessment list, they put the present market rate for the items 1 to 129 when they prepared the report i.e. November 1996, market rate value. They did not verify the rates with the rates in writing. For the electrical devices the wear and tear will 5 to 10 percent for a year in their Public Works Department. After a particular period if they deduct the wear and tear value for the electrical devices, it will come to zero (0). The discount for the wear and tear for the electrical devices were not given to any articles in their above mentioned reports. For each electrical device if he calculate the years of the usage and give the discount for the wear and tear, his valuation will differ. He does not know that the discounting for the wear and tear ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the prices of the items, which are mentioned in 4 parts. For items 273 to prepare a plan, to make the design estimate and the supervision expenses, I calculate 9 per cent and put the amount at Rs. 8,69,045/-, but I did not see any plan and the estimated design. I do not know who supervised the said one. The calculation as 9 per cent that I mentioned is a figure accepted by the PW. D. I have added this amount on the basis of the idea that this normally occurs when a building is constructed. In Ex. P.662 the above mentioned 9 per cent amount was added. The amount was also added on the same opinion (in page 2 for the 24th item, I added the building value). The value is Rs. 10,39,633/-. In Ex. P.663, the amount 9 per cent was not added. In Ex. P.661, the amount of per cent was not added. In Ex. P.2152 age of items 130 to 204 has not been mentioned. For these, I did not mention the wear and tear also. In the camp office heading, the items were 205 to 260. Out of this, I mentioned the brand names only for 15 items. I did not mention in my report with whom I enquired for the price details. I did not mention how old the items are and the wear and tear also. For the rates of the articles, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... my signature is not correct. Likewise, it is not correct to say that Ex. P.611 to 663 documents were prepared by the police and that they took my signature. It is not correct to say that I have quoted inflated prices for the items mentioned in 4 documents. It is not correct to say that the items and devices I have mentioned are not there. It is not correct to say that I have not gone to the markets and not enquired the rates. It is not correct to say that I have gone by the instructions of the police to help the present government, as I am a government servant and giving evidence against Jayalalitha. It is not correct to say that the electrical devices prices were high in that report as instructed by the police and it is wrong to say that I put only my signature. In the cross-examination, he has deposed that above his post is the post of the Electrical Engineer, above him is the Electrical Department Superintending Engineer post and above him the Building and Electrical Department, Chief Engineer's post. There are rules in the Tamil Nadu Public Works Department to govern our functioning. A valuation of Rs. 15,000/- and above has to be valued by the Electrical Engineer on his ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... es and devices were of good standard or not. They have noted the fans and tube lights as 'fixtures'. Those details were not there in their report. If they had mentioned in their report about the standard and the number of the devices, they would have know the correct prices. In their report, they took the market value for the articles while preparing the report. It was not prepared according to the PW. D rates. He has not taken in writing from shop keepers about the market rates if the articles existing then. They did not mention the break up figures of the electrical devices. They did not go to the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board to find out about the electrical connections of the building they inspected. At that time of their inspection apart from Inspector Jayapal, his higher officers were not present there. They inspected the Paiyanur bungalow for about one to one-and-a-half hours. We prepared a proceedings Note, model plan of the electrical devices in the Paiyanur bungalow. He gave them to the Executive Engineer Swarnam. That model plan and the proceedings note were not submitted in the Court. The value mentioned in the report is only a rough estimation. They cannot asses ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Engineer to value the electronics items, but he did not come along with them. Since our team members do not have any training to value the electronic devices, they cannot do the assessment. For the item 58 they did not mention the manufacturing company's name and capacity in the Ex. P.2152. Depending upon the company and capacity, the price will be fixed. The details will be applicable to item 61 also. The items from 126 to 129 were made out of stone and it is a decorative item. So, they do not have the qualification to assess those items. They have to do more assessment for the glass ware fixed in the items 150 to 156. The value is less for the electrical devices. The AC units (items 70 to 72) were old, yet they did the assessment. The value of the AC machines goes down if used regularly. In Ex. P.2152 the valued AC unit they have not taken into consideration of the wear and tear of the machine. So, they did not mention the prices of it items 107 and 108 how old are they and its wear and tear value account was not mentioned in Ex. P.2152. The items 186 to 196 in Ex. P.2152 they did not mention how old they were and the market price. They did not submit any proof to show what ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ing the cross-examination, he states that there is a District Committee to verify the document registration. If the Inspection Committee finds out the defect, they should tell the same to the Sub-Registrar and he should refer it. The Sub-Registrar has right to find out the defects. He did not go personally to find out whether less stamp duty was collected on the document. He does not know the condition of the enquiry under Section 47A (1). After completion of the enquiry under Section 47A (1), they would know whether the document is defect in stamp duty. Once in three months officials would come from the Head Officer for internal audit. Their work is to verify whether the stamp duty and assessment are correct. Nallamma Naidu gave 165 documents to examine. Ex. P190 is the original copy. It is not mentioned as certified copy. The Officer has signed in that without date. The date seal is there without date. Their Department did not take action for the less stamp duty. Generally in villages, they would not calculate land by square feet. In villages' guidelines will be in acre. He did not see guidelines register, when he inspected Uthukadu village. It is not mentioned in the docume ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ternoon meal. For each leaf, he prepared three sweets including carrot halwa, pachadi, two poriyals, chips, vada, happalam, payasam, rice, sambar, rasam and curds. Based on his fifty years experience and prices then prevailed, he estimated that Rs. 55 to Rs. 60/- was spent to each meal. About 2,000 VIPs consumed food. The VIP Dining place could seat about 350 to 400 people at a time. 20 persons worked under him. They gave him Rs. 11,850/- as salary. A person from Shivaji Films gave the above mentioned cash. For 200 persons, six sacs rice was used. 120 to 150 kgs. of vegetables were used. He does not know anything about cool drinks, juice and thambulam items. During cross examination, he states the bride is the actor Shivaji Ganeshan's granddaughter. He received payment in cash from Shivaji Films. PW. 225 -S. Ravichandran has deposed that he was working as Cashier in Indian Bank at Abhirampuram Branch at Chennai. His duties include counting cash paid by customers, checking entry, sealing the challan with date for the money received, initialing the challan. He speaks about transaction pertaining to Sri. Nageshwar Rao. PW. 226 - N. Thiyagarajan has deposed that he was working a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... return should have been filed within 31.8.1990. Self assessment tax of Rs. 61,549/- was remitted on 21.11.1992. Deputy Commissioner passed the assessment order through Ex. P2137. Date Tax paid 20.11.1995 Rs. 5 lakhs, 8.12.1995 Rs. 5 lakhs, 18.11.1996 Rs. 5 lakhs, 28.2.1996 Rs. 5 lakhs, 19.3.1996 Rs. 5 lakhs, 16.4.1996 Rs. 2,24,780/- 24.4.1996 Rs. 5 lakhs, 24.5.1996 Rs. 4 lakhs, This file was reopened for non disclosure of agricultural income. On 20.11.1992 Selvi Jayalalitha filed income tax for the assessment year 1991-92. Deputy Commissioner passed the assessment order vide Ex. P.2030. On 21.11.1992 Selvi Jayalalitha remitted Rs. 3,78,065/- including interest as self assessment tax. After passing assessment, she remitted Rs. 10 lakhs on 1.10.1994 Rs. 5 lakhs on 26.12.1994 and Rs. 7 lakhs on 21.1.1995. This file was also reopened for non disclosure of agricultural income. On 23.11.1992, Selvi Jayalalitha filed income tax return for the assessment year 1992-93. Self assessment tax of Rs. 3,89,145/- on 23.11.1992. Ex. 2140 assessment order was passed. In March 1998, for the same reason, he reopened it and on 28.3.2000, passed the reassessment order. Selvi Jayala ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e filed property tax return. She paid tax Rs. 7,486/-. She filed income tax return for the year 1988-89 on 25.2.1993. For the assessment year 1989-90, she filed income tax return on 25.2.1993. Ex. P2206 is property tax return filed by 2nd Accused on 25.2.1993 for the assessment year 1990-91. For the year 1991-92, she filed property tax return on 26.2.1993. Ex. 2210 is the property tax return filed by the second accused on 26.2.1993 for the assessment year 1992-93. During his cross examination, he states he don't know whether Sri. P. Chidambaram, Finance Minister was opposed to Selvi Jayalalitha. To reopen the case, he took superior officer's permission. He reopened the income tax return since agricultural income was not furnished. PW. 228 - R. Rajasekaran has deposed that he worked as Chartered Accountant. For the assessment years 1987-88 to 1992-93 he filed income tax and property tax returns on different dates of November 1992. Selvi Jayalalitha has not maintained any account with regard to agricultural income. Ex. P2176 is the income tax returns of Selvi Jayalalitha for the assessment year 1996-97. Sri. V.N. Sudhakaran's marriage was also mentioned in this return ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nstructions. Ex. P2224 item No. 19 is the file related to Gopal Promoters. Ex. P2224 item No. 20 is the file related to Sea Enclave. Ex. P2224 item No. 21 is the file related to Vigneshwara Builders. Ex. P2224 item No. 22 is the file related to Ayyappa Properties Development. Ex. P2224 item No. 23, item No. 1 pertains to Namashivaya Housing Development and J.J. Leasing and Maintenance respectively. Ex. P2224 item No. 3, Ex. P2224 item No. 4, Ex. P2224 item No. 5 and item No. 8 pertains to Green Farm House, Fresh Mushrooms, Jaya Publications and Marble Marvels respectively. He was appointed by Ramraj Agro Mills to do the secretarial work to change the partnership deed. They made arrangement to change the share certificate to Tmt. N. Sasikala and Sri. V.N. Sudhakaran and some more persons whose names were mentioned by the concerned. Ex. P2224 item No. 33 is the file which contained application for change of share certificate of Ramraj Agro Mills Ltd.,. Ex. P2245 is the file. Ex. P2224 item No. 33 is the file containing Minutes of the Directors of Ramraj Agro Mills Ltd. During cross examination, he states that Green Farm House purchased a land in Vettuvankeni for Rs. 3,63,120/-. Gree ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... a. J. Real Estate on 7.4.95 - Rs. 25 lakhs b. J.S. Housing Development on 7.4.95 - Rs. 12.46 lakhs c. Lex Property Development on 15.3.95 - Rs. 133 lakhs d. J. Farm House on 17.10.95 - Rs. 50 lakhs e. Kodanadu Tea Estate on 28.09.95 - Rs. 375 lakhs f. Maha Subbu Lakshmi Kalyana Mantapam on 10.11.94 - Rs. 17.85 lakhs." Apart from this Lex Property Development Ltd., has obtained overdraft of Rs. 19,03,088/- from the above Bank. Maha Subbu Lakshmi Kalyana Mantapam obtained amount on 10.9.94 Rs. 17,85,274/- by way of overdraft. Anjaneya Printers was registered under the Indian Companies Act on 14.7.93. At that time, the paid capital was Rs. 1.50 lakhs. Accused Nos. 2 and 3 were Directors of this company at that time. Second Accused invested Rs. 90,000/- and third Accused invested Rs. 60,000/-. From the beginning, the company was carrying on printing work. Anjaneya Printers earned Rs. 9,89,690/- in the year 1993-94. Anjaneya Printers earned in many ways like printing text books, printing daily newspapers for outsiders, printing wall posters, selling scrap. Anjaneya Printers has received Rs. 50,60,000/- through public investment. In 1994-95, Anjaneya Printers did business for ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ough rent on machines Rs. 14,97,940/- through other categories. They got income for the year 1995-96 as follows: a. Through Sales, Printing and Advertisement - Rs. 2,50,28,552/- b. Rent - Rs. 15,47,832/- c. Rent on machines - Rs. 3,00,000/- d. Other categories- Rs. 15,02,310/-" Jaya Publications settled loan of Rs. 1.50 Crores for buying Tansi Property from the above mentioned income of Namathu MGR. For this case, while Nallamma Naidu in his office examined him for many hours, he gave all the details about the income from 1.4.91 to 30.3.96 of Jaya Publications, Namathu MGR and Anjaneya Printers. Even then, Nallamma Naidu has not shown income details of Jaya Publications concern in this case. Namathu MGR has a daily accredited to get Government Advertisement. He showed all the details about the annual income of each and every year of Namathu MGR and handed over all the documents to him. Tmt. Sasikala administered daily and banking activities of Jaya Publications. She was the Administrative Director. Selvi Jayalalitha was a dormant partner of Jaya Publications. Vinod Video Vision was owned by Tmt. Sasikala. That concern deals with equipments of television for rent video c ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the Rice Mills at different times. In 1994, when that concern sold the shares, the Accused No. 2 purchased 1,20,000 shares at the rate of Rs. 3/-, the Accused No. 3 purchased 1,20,000 shares at the rate of Rs. 3/-. The cost of the construction made by that company belongs only to that company and not to his shareholders. Super Duper TV Pvt. Ltd., paid Rs. 15,75,000/- to SIPCOT Company from the money which it collected from the operators i.e. Rs. 5,000/- each. The amount shown as fixed deposit in the account of Super Duper TV Pvt. Ltd., in the above said attachment list are the amount so collected through the above said applications. Recovery cases were pending against Maha Subbulakshmi Kalyana Mantapa. A loan for Rs. 17,86,000/- was taken from Indian Bank, Abhirampuram by Maha Subbulakshmi Kalyana Mantapa. PW. 231 - S. Kumar has deposed that Sri. V.N. Sudhakaran is his employer. Since 1993, he is working as Manager in Kalyana Mantapa. Rs. 900/- was monthly salary during 1993. They used to rent out the above Kalyana Mantapa for functions type marriages, engagements and receptions. The profit after deducting expenses, profit was as follows: Months Amount [Rs.] August 1993 Rs. 5 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ioned in the complaint that he does not need to get permission for filing the case. As per the information he has received, he has mentioned in the complaint the properties of 1st accused on the basis of the complaint. His sworn statement was recorded by the Court. That complaint is registered as Criminal Miscellaneous Petition No. 3238/1996. In that complaint, he has requested the court to get more witnesses by further investigation. In pursuance of Section 202 of Cr.P.C., the Judge directed it to be investigated. During this case investigation, Mr. Nallamma Naidu enquired him. During the cross-examination, he has deposed that when he was the Minister, he gave the particulars of his assets to the Prime Minister. Then Mr. Chandrashekar was the Prime Minister. When he won as the M.P. from Madurai Constituency, he has not submitted particulars of his assets to the Parliament. It was mandated. It was not necessary for him to show his truthfulness. Hence, he did not submit his particulars of his assets. In 1977, he was elected as M.P. from Bombay (North East) Constituency. In 1980 also he was elected from the same constituency. Then also he did not submit particulars of his assets in ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... liance with Jayalalitha, he won the next Loksabha elections. But with the support of ADMK alliance, he won the Loksabha from Madurai. In 1999, he was defeated from Madurai without ADMK alliance (support). He has never referred Selvi Jayalalitha as Durga, Saraswathy or as Lakshmi. But he has told that the Mayavathi, Sonia Gandhi and Jayalalitha should play a role of Durga, Saraswathy and Lakshmi to dismiss the Government of BJP. It is wrong to state that he has not co-operated with anybody in his political life. It is wrong to state that he left Janasang Party. It is wrong to state that he had differences of opinion with leadership of Janasangh. Some leaders from Janatha Party left party due to differences of opinion. But he is in Janatha Party only. It is wrong to state that political instability is his way of political life. It is wrong to state that he is the political enemy of Selvi Jayalalitha and acting accordingly. During his thirteen months of relationship with political party of Selvi Jayalalitha he did not file any case against her. Thereafter also he did not file any case against her. In Thiruchi, Mr. Velusamy was in his party. He expelled him because Mr. Velusamy lodged ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ed against her. In 1991 he did not contest election. It is wrong to state that, as she did not allot him the seat, he could not contest in the election. It is wrong to state that she is capable of gracefully forgiving people. He has lodged this kind of complaints. It is wrong to state that in his view that nobody from DMK are involved in corruption. During the end of 1998, he has filed a suit relating to manipulating the caste certificate. But so far, no final decision has been given in that case. He did not file the suit in the Chennai High Court for expeditious disposal of that case. It is wrong to state that relating to the Madurai Idly Shop problem and action against the DMK representative; initially he took speedier steps, later he left without taking any action. That DMK personality is Mr. M.K. Alagiri, who is son of Mr. M. Karunanidhi. He has expressed an opinion that Sun TV activities are illegal. But in regard to that he has not lodged any complaint. He has not remained as a mute spectator after filing a case. He does not remember, whether he has raised about Sun TV in the Parliament. In this regard, he has not filed any case because he was not able to marshal sufficient e ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ducted. Moulis Agencies Company printed the wedding invitations. He pasted the address of 400 VIPs on the invitations who were Chief Ministers of many States. Many cooks came from Thanjavur to cook food for the marriage. He has seen 4th Accused Ilavarasi in Poes garden. He does not know the address of the building constructed under Siruthur. During his period of work, Selvi Jayalalitha was very strict in her administration and was very particular that one department officer should not interfere with another department officer. Concerned party workers were appointed to look after the work of AIADMK. Criminal cases were filed and disciplinary proceedings were initiated against higher officers of previous Government and two Chief Secretaries, Hari Bhaskar and Venkatraman, Senior IAS Officers, C. Ramachandran, T.R. Srinivasan, Pandey, Acharialu, Kurupoora Sundara Pandiyam, Sampath, Satyamurthy. He was not allotted work for one year. This day out of compulsion, he is giving evidence and stating whatever he knows. This witness was re-examined because of the contradictory statements. He stated what he has stated in his chief examination is correct. PW. 238 - Ananda Padmanabhan is a partn ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... m 21.6.96 to 14.8.96. She has received only the copy of the complaint filed by PW. 232 in the Principal Sessions Judge, City Civil Court, Chennai. Original complaint was not given to her. Except Rajya Sabha proceedings, no document were filed along with the complaint filed PW. 232. On 18.7.96 PW. 232 was examined in her presence by Nallamma Naidu. At that time Nallamma Naidu recorded the statement of PW. 232. PW. 232 did not produce any document when he was examined by Nallamma Naidu. While going through the order of Principal Judge, she was aware that she was directed to investigate on the complaint. During the period of her investigation, I consulted our Legal Advisor and was advised not to register a case as the matter being handled under Section 202 Cr.P.C. She has nominated about 10 or 12 Police Officers to investigate in to that complaint. Those Officers were drawn from various Districts. As per the order of Principal Judge she had to file report on or before 20.8.96. Till 14.8.96 she did not prepare the Report to be sent to Principal Judge, and at the same time her team was examining the witnesses and collecting documents. She has maintained a Case Diary for her investigatio ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... A.C., Thanjavur, 10. Thiru P. Janarthanam, D.S.P., V & A.C., Tirunelveli, 11. S. Radhakrishnan, D.S.P., V & A.C., Madurai, 12. E. Babu, D.S.P., V& A.C., Vellore, 13. M. Jayapalan, Inspector, V & A.C., Kanjeepurm. I have issued orders for Jayapalan under Section 17 and not under Section 18 of P.C. Act. Similarly she has issued orders under Section 17 of P.C. Act to V. Babu, C. Murugesan, Nallamma Naidu, Purushothaman and not under Section 18 of P.C. Act. But she has issued orders to valasarajan under Sections 17 and 18 of P.C. Act. She has issued orders u/s. 18 of P.C. Act to Jagannathan, Dakshinamoorthy, P.S. Sethuraman, G. Shankar, T.R. Shanmugavelandi, T. Janarthanam and S. Radhakrishnan. She has not issued orders for the above Officers u/s. 17 of P.C. Act. She has not examined any witness during her investigation in this case. She did not get any further opinion other than that of her legal Advisor's opinion. Further she has not obtained any written legal advice from her Legal Advisor. She has got only oral legal advice from him. She was not aware whether the statements recorded and documents recovered have been submitted to this Court. She has also sought the assistance of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... mma Naidu and some police department officials (all working in Anti-Corruption and Prevention Department and Vigilance Department) were appointed by the Director, Anti-Corruption, Prevention and Vigilance Department. Then the investigation started. This team enquired Dr. Subramaniam Swamy and other witnesses. They collected some documents from the banks, finance companies and Registration office. Some documents were collected from the companies started by Selvi Jayalalitha and her associates. All those documents were verified by a separate division. In that situation High Court stayed one order, Criminal M.P. No. 5755/96. Accordingly, the investigation could not continue because of the stay. The stay was revoked on 4.9.96 by the court. In the same order, it was stated that, Thiru. Nallamma Naidu could continue with the investigation. An order was passed to this effect. The court ordered that the officer appointed by the Director, Anti-Corruption and Prevention Department would continue with the investigation. On this basis Nallamma Naidu was appointed and he continued the investigation and he seized the documents relating to Selvi Jayalalitha and he examined them. In this situation ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... llamma Naidu and Principal Sessions Court, under my supervision Nallamma Naidu completed his investigation in this case and he submitted the charge sheet on 4.6.97. During the cross-examination, he has deposed that if they asked for his educational qualification it is not related to this case. He has joined in the police department after he passed in the Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission Group I examination. It is wrong to state that when he wrote the Group-I Examinations he was a teacher. His father-in-law's name is Aroor Muthu. His father-in-law was elected as MP from the DMK Party in 1962 and 1967. When he was in service then the Chief Minister was Thiru. M. Karunanidhi and had only official connections with him and not any other contact because his father-in-law belonged to DMK. In 1965 he joined Police Department. In 1994 he was promoted as IG. He has received the file prepared by PW. 240 in this case. The order came from the Tamil Nadu Government. The order was given to him by his Department Director Thiru. Raghavan and asked him to file the FIR in this case. On the basis of legal advice and as he too was satisfied, he filed the FIR of this case. The Government order ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n. He saw the investigation file done by the PW. 240. When he looked in to it, already about 300 witnesses had been enquired and many documents had been seized. He came to know about all these from the file. In this case, after he registered the FIR, the witnesses who had already been enquired in the investigation of the PW. 240, were further examined and their oral depositions were taken by Thiru. Nallamma Naidu. But, he advised Thiru. Nallamma Naidu that all the documents seized during the investigation of PW. 240 were to be taken as they were. Already, he informed that the documents were many, there were more than 300 statements. A report was sent to the Principal Sessions Court that accused Nos. 2 to 4 were offenders. But it was not changed in the FIR. At the time of filing the FIR, when the FIR was filed, apart from the criminal sections mentioned, other criminal sections were added but the changes were not indicated in the FIR. In this case after he has filed the FIR, he did not submit any requested to the FIR. The Principal Sessions Judge that the enquiry under Section 202 of Cr.P.C. should be completed. But for the enquiry under Section 202 of Cr.P.C., many petitions were f ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n recorded in the mahazar. Moreover he did not sign in any documents prepared in those five places. He does not know whether Jayalalitha was arrested in the CBCID case and kept in Central Jail, Chennai from 17.12.96 to 3.1.97. But he knew that she was arrested by the CBCID Police. When Selvi Jayalalitha was in the Central Jail, Chennai, her house door No. 36, Poes Garden was searched. He did not advise Nallamma Naidu to conduct the search at Door No. 36, Poes Garden house from 18.9.96 to 7.12.96. During that period, to search the above said house Nallamma Naidu did not seek his advice. At the time of the search of No. 36, Poes Garden house, about twenty to thirty police officers were divided into 4 to 5 teams. Apart from that, outside the house too the police kept a watch. On 7.12.96, at No. 36, Poes Garden house, he was there for about six or seven hours. He did not procure any separate order from the court to search the above said house on 7.12.96. But the order was taken to search the house. From 7.12.96 to 12.12.96 for two or three days he looked after the search of the house Door No. 36, Poes Garden. He refused to give permission to the 'Sun TV' and other private T.V. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... r to give power according to Sections 17 and 18 of Anti-Corruption and Prevention of Corruption Act, separately. Ex. P2266, the FIR, also does not mention that he gave power to Nallamma Naidu under Sections 17 and 18 of Anti Corruption and Prevention of Corruption Act. At the time when Nallamma Naidu was investigating this case or when he got promotion also, he did not give any power to investigate according to the Sections 17 and 18 of Anti Corruption and Prevention of Corruption Act. If according, to the Section 18 of Anti-Corruption and Prevention of Corruption Act, those officers who had not been empowered cannot go to banks and seize the documents, about that he does not know. We wrote letters to the Chief Engineer to value the buildings. The engineers were allotted on the basis of our letter. Like that we wrote a letter to the customs department. Then PW. 125 Vasudevan was allotted. Our Department Director wrote letters to the Chief Engineer and the Customs Department. He does not know that if those letters were submitted to the court. They have some rules regarding the functioning of our department. He verified the reports given by the valuers. He did not compare the details ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... they saw all the places in that house. When they went to the house, a person named Baskar from the house and a lawyer (name not known) raised objections. When they show the court order, nobody objected our proceeding. Nallamma Naidu divided the work among the team members. He read the inventory mahazar Ex. P709. In that Ex. P709, it was not written how many teams were formed and what were the works done by the teams. In that Ex. P709, 16 pages were written about the investigation done in Door No. 36, Poes Garden on 7.12.96 and 8.12.96 upto afternoon 1.30. Nallamma Naidu had not written those 16 pages. The Ex. P709 was received by the court on 12.12.96. While preparing the supervision mahazar for No. 36, Poes Garden house, the notes were taken. He asked them to prepare the inventory then and there, but it was not prepared. During the 7.12.96 to 9.2.96 search at the No. 36, Poes Garden he asked Nallamma Naidu whether they were following my advice, and he told me that he was acting as per my advice. Now he came to know that Nallamma Naidu did not act according to his advice and had changed the order of things. They do not have a general diary in our department office. He does not main ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the building value with all the additional buildings put up was shown in item No. 181 in the additional list - 2 as Rs. 7,24,98,000/-. Our case was based on the additional and new construction in No. 36, Poes Garden house. About the details of the new construction and measurements only Nallamma Naidu should be asked. Before 1.7.91 in the door No. 36, Poes Garden house, what was the constructed area in squares? Only Nallamma Naidu can answer. In Chennai, if a property was purchased in 1967, the value will go up many times by 1991. M.O. 1 is a luxury bus. He does not remember in whose name the bus is. He does not remember if they have collected the copies of registration certificate for their vehicles involved. In this case, he does not know that if the cost price of the vehicles mentioned in the list tallies with the original price of purchase. When they calculate the income tax regarding the vehicles, they take into account the wear and tear value each year. He does not know that if the discount for wear and tear of vehicles was given in this case and deducted. He has not seen properly whether the vehicles not belonging to 1, 2 and 4 accused have been taken into their account and v ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... mily expenditure of that person. Regarding this approximate family expenditure, the statistic department officer was not enquired and his deposition was not taken. He does not know that whether the public and the party gave gifts and gift cheques for the birthday of Selvi Jayalalitha in 1991-92 and 1992-93 and the other years. Nallamma Naidu only can answer whether the gift cheque amount would be added to the income of the receiver and whether the amount was added for the calculation of the tax. They come to know that Selvi Jayalalitha had shares in many firms. But he does not know that how many shares she had and in how many firms. The members who assessed the slippers, sarees and watches in the house of Selvi Jayalalitha were brought by Nallamma Naidu only. Only Nallamma Naidu should be asked where was the necessity to bring persons for valuation other then the persons mentioned by the court. He does not remember the date on which the evidences were first seized at Selvi Jayalalitha's house during the search. In Ex. P709 it was not mentioned about the weight of the silver, gold, diamond jewels types of the jewels in Selvi Jayalalitha's house. In Ex. P2266 in the 4th Para ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n answer who gave the legal advice to get the permission from the Chennai Corporation Principal Sessions Judge to investigate the places which don't come under the jurisdiction of the Chennai Principal Sessions Judge. Regarding this he did not pay attention. In the Chennai Central Jail when Selvi Jayalalitha was enquired from 27.12.96 to 31.12.96 and on 2.1.97, he was not there. Only Nallamma Naidu should be asked whether permission was taken from the court to enquire her in the jail. The M.O. 1 was valued by Mr. Venkataraman a transport Deputy Officer and he gave the report. He does not know that whether that report was notified in the court. From 7.12.96, when Selvi Jayalalitha's house was under investigation, then and there the details were telecast in the Sun TV. This was not brought to my notice. He did not see the video shots regarding the above said matter in the TV. He did not ask my officers whether they followed my advice that the private TV Channels should not take video photos when the investigation was in progress in D. No. 36, Poes Garden. The telecast of the investigation proceedings in Selvi Jayalalitha's house by the TV Channels was not brought to his n ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s he has to enquire Selvi Jayalalitha. He does not know that whether the information of the six days enquiry of Selvi Jayalalitha in the jail were sent to the court as per procedure. The accused related to this case were not enquired in my direct observation. He does not know that whether the information regarding the enquiry of the 2nd and 4th accused conducted for many days and many hours, was filed in the court as per procedure. He knew that many petitions were filed by the Government's side in this case. He did not bring the metal detectors at the time of investigation in Selvi Jayalalitha's house. He does not know that whether a team of computer experts was brought at the time of investigation in Selvi Jayalalitha house. If it is stated that Selvi Jayalalitha was not enquired before and after the FIR was filed, instead she was enquired when she was in the jail for 6 days because this was her mental conflicts and stress, regarding this, only Nallamma Naidu can answer. After verifying the account details in the attached list and property details, he decided that they were correct. The articles details mentioned in Ex. P709 and the articles mentioned in the valuation repo ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s. He made sure that the investigation carried out was according to our department rules. Regarding the property when they asked explanation from the first respondent why they did not point out the properties mentioned in the attached list and question, for this only Nallamma Naidu can give answer. Only Nallamma Naidu should say why separate notices were not sent to every accused seeking explanation about the property details. The property of the minor Vivek was joined in this case and that was not brought to his notice. He knew that the 4th accused was a widow. It is not correct to say that he enquired the 4th accused for many hours and many days. It is not correct to say that he enquired the 4th accused. He treated her vulgarly 4th accused and threatened her. He heard that the husband of the 4th accused died of electrical shock in Hyderabad. It is not correct to say that he threatened the 4th accused to write and give that Selvi Jayalalitha was the reason for the death of her husband who died in the electrical shock. It is wrong to state that since she did not listen to my words. He implicated her as an accused in this case. After his retirement on 31.1.2000 only once he rejoined ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rect to say that because of political enmity to file case on the first accused the 3rd accused was also joined. For this he became an instrument in the hands of the Government. It is not correct to say that we joined the third opponent as an accused in this case because he did not listen to our threatened words and turned against Selvi Jayalalitha as an approver. The third accused is not related through blood to the first accused. It is not correct to say that even though they came to know during investigation that six months before the marriage of the 3rd accused, from the bride's house, they had given gift amount out of which he purchased the property, we had hide this information. PW. 242 - Jagannathan, PW. 243 - Krishna Rao T, PW. 244 - Vishwanathan C.P., PW. 245 - Janarthanam, PW. 246 - Paul Devadoss T, PW. 247 - Radhakrishnan S., PW. 248 - Vasantha V., PW. 249 - M. Suresh Kumar, PW. 250 - Karunakaran, PW. 251 - Shankar G., PW. 252 - Shanmuga Velandi, PW. 253 - Natarajan K.P., PW. 255 - Anbu Chezhian, PW. 256 - Kadhiresan R., are all Police Officers of the Anti Corruption Department. PW. 254 - Dellirajan has deposed that he was working as Assistant in Head Office of Tami ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 13[1][E] of Prevention of Corruption Act. He was appointed as Investigating Officer by PW. 241 - V.C. Perumal. Apart from him, there were 16 Police Officers. He allotted the officers appointed under sections 17 and 18 of Prevention of Corruption Act and assigned with work on the territorial jurisdiction. PW. 256 and he formed a Committee under Deputy Vigilance Officer Mr. Kadiresan and sent it to Jedi Metla in Andhra Pradesh, Pesipet, Fazilabad and some other places to find out further details whether Accused No. 1 had property and buildings. He examined Sundaravadanam, Elder Brother of Accused No. 2. He applied to the Government to form an Expert Committee for valuing the property and buildings pertaining to this case. He interrogated Accused Nos. 3 and 4 in this case. On 1.10.96, 4.10.96 and 7.10.96 he examined and recorded statement of many witnesses. He obtained permission from the Court to inspect 76 places related to this case. The orders under Sections 17 and 18 of Prevention of Corruption Act was given to him by PW. 241 on 18.9.96. They are at Ex. P2308 and Ex. P2309. He sent a letter to the Government to inform him about the salary and allowances of Accused No. 1. He also ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... send representatives on her behalf during the search. She agreed to it and sent Mr. Bhaskaran and Mr. Vijayan to help him in conducting the search. On 7.12.96 at 12.30 pm he along with Committee went to No. 36, Poes Garden and met Mr. Bhaskaran, representative of Accused No. 1. During the search, he prepared three inventory mahazars and one seizure mahazar. During the search, gold jewellery, diamond jewellery and silver articles were valued by PW. 125 - Vasudevan from the Customs Department and prepared the valuation list of articles. Sarees, chappals, suitcases and watches were valued. PW. 131 - Jerold Wilson and its Committee valued chappals. On 18.12.96, PW. 130 - Maran and its Committee brought 91 watches to their office and prepared a report as per Ex. P740. On 12.12.96, valuable jewels were kept in separate room and sealed and key was given to Bhaskaran. PW. 125 - Vasudevan who has valued the jewels on 20.12.96 and 21.12.96 also valued silver articles and mahazar was drawn. The silver articles were not seized but were kept in No. 36, Poes Garden in a separate room under lock and key and handed over the key to Mr. Bhaskaran. The Tamil Nadu Special Branch Police arranged for t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n. PW. 252 enquired about ancestral property and other properties of Accused Nos. 2 to 4. He fixed the check period as 1.7.91 to 30.4.96 and keeping this period in mind, he prepared the statements 1 to 7. Annexure-1 is the assessment at the beginning of the check period i.e., assessment as on 1.7.91. Annexure-2 is assessment at the end of the check period i.e., as on 30.4.96 and it was found that Accused No. 1 has amassed assets worth Rs. 62,25,20,896/- disproportionate to his income. He went personally and handed over letter to Accused No. 1. He asked Accused No. 1 to give explanation within 15 days. On 14.4.97, he has taken certified letter of acceptance from Accused No. 1 Ex. P2318. He further deposed, he went to Apollo Hospital and interrogated Accused No. 2 and recorded her voluntary statement. Thereafter, the corrected property statements were sent along with letter dated 30.5.97 to the Governor through Government of Tamilnadu. Then, on 3.6.97, he got letter dated 2.6.97 from Governor granting permission. He further deposed, in the year 1960, Accused No. 1 and her mother instituted 'Natya Kala Nikethan', a dance institute and by acting in films they earned their weal ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 'Kothari Orient Finance Corporation'. In the same company, in 1991, Accused No. 1 had deposited two fixed deposits of Rs. 1 lakh each. Further, in the year 1989, Accused No. 1 had deposited Rs. 3 lakhs in fixed deposit with Sriram Finance Corporation. In the same year, Accused No. 1 had deposited Rs. 5 lakhs as fixed deposit. Further, in the year 1990 - Rs. 7 lakhs, 1991 - Rs. 20 lakhs were deposited by Accused No. 1 in the same Corporation. Accused No. 1 had deposited Rs. 3 lakhs in fixed deposit in Central Bank of India, Secunderabad. In the year 1990, Accused No. 1 has deposited Rs. 10 lakhs in Madurai Bank as fixed deposit. Totally, as on 1.7.91 the value of the assets of Accused Nos. 1 and 2 was Rs. 2,01,83,957/-. Out of the said amount Rs. 5 lakhs fixed deposit is shown in two places which should be deducted. He further deposed, on the occasion of wedding reception of Accused No. 3, pandal and decorations, chairs, decorative structures has to be valued by PW. D. PW. 181 - Thangaraj, PW. 200 - K.P. Muthuswamy valued the same and submitted a report. From 1.7.91 to 30.1.96, Accused Nos. 2 to 4 were residing at No. 36, Poes Garden. During that period, Accused Nos. 2 and ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... In this way, for the items mentioned in the 2nd statement, the valuation has been calculated at Rs. 66,44,73,537.27/-. From this account, if the amount to be deleted, the balance amount is Rs. 66,30,30,070.73/-. During the check period, accused persons earned total assets worth Rs. 64,28,46,114.20/-. Details of income of accused persons from 1.7.91 to 30.4.96 is furnished in the 3rd statement. Items 1 to 8 were loan taken from Indian Bank, Abhiramapuram Branch. Item No. 9 is loan availed by Accused No. 1 from Canfin Homes. Items from 10 to 32, 35, 36, 37, 39, 41 to 44, 49, 50 and 56 were interest amount. Item 33 is income from Hyderabad grape vineyard. Item 34 is rental income from Door No. 36, Sree Nagar Colony, Hyderabad. Item No. 40 is the rental income from Door No. 16, Radhika Colony, Secunderabad house for the 2nd Accused. Item 45 is the rental income from the vehicles of the 3rd Accused. Item No. 48 is the rental income from the vehicles for Accused No. 4. Item 46 is the commission for the 3rd accused from the fixed deposits of Accused No. 1. Though it is stated as Rs. 3 lakhs in the statement, the real amount was Rs. 1,85,500/- only. Item 47 is the loan amount from Royapet ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... cross examination, he states that in the year 1961 he joined as Sub Inspector of Police in the Police Department. During his service when Sarkaria Commission was formed against Thiru Karunanidhi, he was one among the many officers appointed towards it. As the matter is still pending, he cannot say details on which he worked. Investigations on that case went on from 1977 to 1980. He denies suggestion put to him that he became very acquainted with Thiru Karunanidhi during this investigation. His son Saravanan is the lawyer by profession in Chennai. His son Saravanan was Junior of Mr. Jawaharlal who is appointed as Govt. Prosecutor. Mr. Jawaharlal apart from this investigation, had represented as Govt. Prosecutor in three other cases filed. In this case, his son might have come to this Court to assist Mr. Jawaharlal who worked as a Government Prosecutor. He denies suggestion put to him that team of investigating officers are none other than DMK Sympathisers. He also denies suggestion cases against Selvi Jayalalitha was continued for purpose of political vendetta. For this case, one Inspector General of Police, one Superintendent of Police, two Deputy Superintendent of Police, 9 Inspec ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... He denies suggestion that he brought articles from outside and planted them in the house at the time of search on that day to inflate the number of things in the list. He also denies suggestion that video tape recording and photos were taken by him. Generally they do not arrest persons involved in disproportionate wealth case. In this case, Accused No. 3 has been arrested. Besides, Accused Nos. 1 and 2 have been arrested. Accused No. 1 was arrested in connection with some other case. The house at Door No. 36, Poes Garden has ground floor area measuring 2,500 sq. feet. First floor building over the same ground floor may have an area of more than 2,500 sq. feet. He received treatment at Apollo Hospital. Tamilnadu Government has spent about Rs. 88,000/-. He denies suggestion put to him that Tamilnadu Government has spent money in excess of the medical expenses payable under the pension scheme. He denies suggestion put to him that Tamilnadu Government took keen interest in his treatment so as to reward him for the zeal with which he has conducted in this case filed against Selvi Jayalalitha. During his interrogation of Selvi Jayalalitha in Chennai Central Jail on 31.12.96, she gave a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 4. He has sent statement of 399 witnesses examined prior to 18.9.96 to the Court. His Director has contacted the income tax officials and obtained many details and documents from them. In this connection, he has also gone to the Income Tax office who is aware of the fact that team comprising of Central PW. D personnel belonging to the IT Department have inspected and assessed Door No. 36, Poes Garden. At present he cannot exactly say when the assessment of Door No. 36, Poes Garden, took place. He came to know that Central PW. D Team has done assessment before concluding his investigation. He did not know the sum at which CPWD estimated the value. He denies the suggestion that they have not disclosed their transaction as it is less than their assessment. The property located at Jedi Metla, Andhra Pradesh was assessed by PW. 98 - Velayudhan and his Committee. He does not know as per which State Government rates the assessment was done. He was not aware that Central PW. D Department has valued the construction work in Jedi Metla, Andhra Pradesh. It was found that Accused No. 2 has paid income tax from 1985 onwards. Ex. P712 does not mention total weight of jewels on 18.12.96. The news ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... private joint firm with one of the Accused as partners. Namadhu MGR was set up before 1.7.91. He is aware that this organization runs current account No. 1952 from Canara Bank, Mylapore Branch. PW. 201 - Vidyasagar has stated that as on 30.6.91, the account balance was Rs. 5,51,826.94/-. He examined PW. 201 on 13.3.97, 14.3.97, 17.3.97 and 27.3.97. While recording statement, he informed that there is deposit of Rs. 10,000/- and above in current account No. 1952 and total balance was Rs. 7,54,46,179/-. The amount received is in the form of demand draft in current account No. 1952, Canara Bank, Mylapore Branch. The Manager of Namadhu MGR is Mr. Balaji. Though he enquired and recorded his statements, he was not examined in the court. He has not seized the Administrative registers of various records of this organization from 1.7.91 to 30.4.96 because those records were taken by the Income Tax Officials. He did not seize them. He did not make request in writing for these records from the Income Tax Department. He did not ask them to provide attested copies of those records as per Rule 6 of their department. They have right to get documents and records from the Income Tax Department. He ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ccounts in the report submitted for the above firms. They came to know through investigation that J.J. T.V. Pvt. Ltd., has taken a loan of Rs. 1 Crore from the Indian Bank, Abhirampuram Branch. The account of JJ TV Pvt. Ltd., is not included in this case. In this case, as per section 173[8] of Cr.P.C., applications were submitted for further investigation. In Ex. P712 price of a kilogram of silver is not mentioned. Selvi Jayalalitha has paid income tax and property tax from 1965 onwards while still a minor. Ex. P2327 mentions that the Accused No. 2 had owned 62 types of jewels prior to the check period under item No. 45. But, the 62 types of jewels and its total weight has not been mentioned in item No. 45. In item No. 225, they have not mentioned names of drivers, electricians, sweepers and cooks. Since the accounts pertaining to Vinod Video Vision, Namadhu MGR, Jaya Publications, Sasi Enterprises, Anjaneya Printers were not maintained properly, their Department Auditor P. Chokkalingam has not given separate statements for these firms. It has come to light that Accused No. 4 owns cultivable lands in Peruga Vaznthan Village in Mannargudi Taluk. The gift articles were not shown in t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tigation and the case had been launched at the behest of the then ruling party. He denied suggestion that 48 persons were examined in connection with the properties that have no bearing on the case in order to make it appear gigantic. Mr. Valasarajan, Inspector has seized documents while searching the Wellington Plaza building. He knew the contents of the seized documents. In that, item No. 11 comprises 22 Nos. of entry fee receipt book maintained by the firm Super Duper TV Pvt. Ltd., and those 22 books have been produced in the courts. The counterfoils of the receipts in the books have been produced which shows each person has paid Rs. 5,000/-. Each receipt book has 100 leaves. Those books are Ex. P2341. He denies suggestion that amount mentioned in the above books Rs. 1,10,00,000/- is income of Super Duper TV. He denies suggestion that amount was not included in the 3rd statement. The amount got as loan was not shown as income of Accused No. 3. He does not know whether Accused No. 3 is shareholder of JJ TV. He denies suggestion put to him that he has suppressed the details of Accused No. 3 on the apprehension that it may have adverse effect. Through the Government advertisements, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... He was also not examined by the prosecution. They were deliberately omitted by the prosecution even though they are only competent persons to speak about the marriage expenses. Moreover, the value given by the prosecution itself are highly discordant. PW. 181 is incompetent to evaluate or submit a report. Some of the work was done and food was provided by her party men voluntarily on their own accord. She has not spent any money towards marriage has been accepted." She would like to point out she was leading film actress since 1964. She has acted in more than 120 films in various languages. In each of her films, there were used to be numerous scenes, sometimes, running more than 100 and each scene would require many costumes and some times more than ten costumes for every scene as a leading lady. She has to change many costumes like sarees or silver kameez with matching footwear, accessories and watches etc. Once a particular item was used, it was never used again and many of them were retained by her as a momentos and this account for accumulation of footwear. Hence, these items should not have been valued at all. As a Chief Minister during check period, she was not wearing any ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ncome has been obtained through cultivation of grapes from 16 acres of land at Hyderabad. In that respect, Selvi Jayalalitha has earned an amount of Rs. 52,92,400/- till 30.4.1996. The income tax officials personally supervised and estimated the grape yard at Hyderabad and agreed that income tax returns filed by Selvi Jayalalitha was correct. Ex. P16 is the copy of the order released on 31.1.2002. Selvi Jayalalitha has obtained Rs. 68,94,386/- on account of fixed deposits at Banks and financial companies till 30.4.96. Rs. 3,60,000/- was obtained as rent for flat No. 36, Srinagar colony, Hyderabad till 30.4.96. The house has been brought by Selvi Jayalalitha in the year 1967. Rs. 2,69,50,012/- was obtained by Selvi Jayalalitha as birthday gift and amounts till 30.4.96. This amount has been accepted even by the Income Tax Department. Selvi Jayalalitha has obtained income through shares in various companies. Before 1.7.1997 itself, Selvi Jayalalitha being shareholder of many companies obtained income through those companies which are Jaya Publications and Sasi Enterprises. In those companies, Selvi Jayalalitha was a dormant shareholder while Thirumathi Sasikala has been working partne ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... her deposed that Metalking Enterprises Fabricators Steel items. This concern was started in the year 1993. From then onwards, till 30.4.96 earned income of Rs. 42,38,769/-. Before 1.7.1996 itself, 2nd Accused has made deposits in the bank though as interest an amount of Rs. 15,82,062/- was earned. The 2nd Accused through own properties has earned Rs. 8,58,500/- as rent from 1.7.91 till 30.4.96. The 2nd Accused has earned through land a sum of Rs. 5,85,825/- within the check period. 2nd Accused gained Rs. 51,47,955/- in terms of gifts between 1991 and 1992. The 2nd Accused has availed Rs. 2,67,00,000/- as loan from Bharani Beach Resorts for investments. 2nd Accused has availed loan of Rs. 45,55,00,000/- from Bharani Beach Resorts for J. Farm House. In 1995-96, from private finances, she availed a personal loan of Rs. 15 lakhs from them and from the J. Farm House Rs. 25 lakhs as loan. The above information have been disclosed in the income tax returns of the 2nd Accused. The 4th Accused owns undivided 1/7th share out of 45 acres of wet land in Manargudi Circle, Peruga-Vazhndar Village. Other than that, 4th Accused owns 15 acres of wet land in Neelamangalam region, Rishious Village. T ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... mount ranging from minimum Rs. 12,000/- maximum Rs. 18,000/- for issuance of copy of the Namathu MGR newspaper. In this regard, they also submitted application. DW. 7 - Samsudeen, DW. 8 - R. Adhishesan, DW. 9 - G. Maniraj, DW. 10 - M. Kothandapani, DW. 11 - K. Soundrapandian, DW. 12 - R.P. Paramashivam, DW. 13 - A. Balasubramaniam, DW. 14 - P.M.S. Mani, DW. 15 - D.K. Murthy, DW. 16 - A. Thangaraj, DW. 17 - S. Ramachandran, DW. 18 - M. Natesan, DW. 19 - P. Kannan, DW. 20 - K. Sekar speak about celebration of birthday of Accused No. 1 and contribution of amount in connection with the birthday. Contribution varies from Rs. 1,000/- Rs. 1,500/- Rs. 2,000/-. DW. 12 deposes that they celebrated the birthday of Chief Minister on grand scale. A sum of Rs. 2,16,500/- was collected and demand draft was obtained and same was sent to Accused No. 1. DW. 15 has deposed that Rs. 2,96,800/- was raised by way of contribution and he obtained a demand draft and the same was sent to Party District Secretary. 200-300 persons made contributions for birthday. DW. 16 deposes that he remitted amount of Rs. 2,96,800/- for obtaining demand draft. DW. 18 deposes demand draft was obtained for Rs. 3,42,300/- an ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d be put up by bride side. They decided to put the facade of the marriage pandal. The actual cost of execution of the package is Rs. 57,02,050/-. He gave list of persons who contributed money for execution of the work. DW. 27 has deposed that he along with 11 others arranged the facade of marriage pandal. Work was done by Ramesh. He paid Rs. 5 lakhs. Said amount was collected from party workers in the District. He prepared list of persons who contributed money for the above works along with their names and addresses. The above work relating to facade marriage pandal was done by him and others voluntarily. DW. 28 has deposed that about 12 of them went to their respective Districts and collected money from party workers. It amounted to Rs. 5 lakhs and they contributed to the same for the work of facade of marriage pandal. DW. 29 has deposed that 12 persons decided to contribute Rs. 5 lakhs of the various labour unions of Transport Corporations and selected ten Unions and intimated about the decision of putting up facade of marriage pandal. He requested Rs. 50,000/- each for the above purpose thereby Rs. 5 lakhs was collected by the above Unions and said amount was handed over to Kanc ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... during visits by A1. He did not prepare the list of contributors from whom contributions were collected by him. He did not issue any receipts to those contributors. DW. 43-V. Kothandaraman has deposed that MRC Nagar is situated in Mylapur Legislative Constituency. KRV Ramani was the AIADMK's Party's Secretary for Mylapur Constituency. The secretary of the above area was responsible to over see the decoration arrangements. It was customary to make collections and hand over the amount to the concerned area secretary. They collected Rs. 1,00,000/- from the party workers, members and the office bearers of the Annanagar Area and handed over the same to KRV Ramani. Income Tax department has issued the notice. He has submitted written statements to that notice. DW. 64 - Shanmugam (Auditor) has deposed that he is a practicing Chartered Accountant. He has been practicing as Chartered Accountant for the past over 25 years. His educational qualifications are B.Com., FCA. He was the Auditor for A1-Jayalalitha during the period from 1996 to 2000. He dealt with the Accounts and Assessments of A1-Jayalalitha for the assessment years 1992-92 to 1997-98. The check period pertaining to t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the files which are produced before Court by the Income Tax Department he identifies Ex. D61 as Certified True Copy of the order dated 31.03.1999 passed Income Tax (Appeals-1), Chennai. Normally the Appellate Authority hears both the Assessee as well as Department before deciding the appeals. Up to the assessment year 1992-93 the agricultural income declared by A1-Jayalalitha in her Income Tax Returns had been allowed by the Department. It is only from the Assessment Year 1993-94 onwards the Income Tax Authorities had partly disallowed the agricultural income declared by A1-Jayalalitha in her Tax Returns. In the above mentioned Appeal, the Appellate Authority called for a Report from the Assessing Authority with a direction to inspect the Grape Garden of A1-Jayalalitha and submit a detailed Report regarding the existing standing crops and the derivable income. The Assessing Authority inspected the Grape Garden of A1-Jayalalith somewhere during the month February or March, 1999. During the said inspection he was present as an authorized representative of the Grape Garden of A1-Jayalalitha into 10 parts and physically counted the number of Grape Wines in each part. Apart from Grape ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... me Tax Department started the Reassessment Proceedings without assigning any reasons. Hence, A1-Jayalalitha preferred Writ Petition before Chennai High Court challenging the Re-opening of the Assessments. In the said Writ Petition, the Department filed their Counter explaining there under the reasons for re-opening for Assessments. In the light of that A1-Jayalalitha withdrew the Writ Petition. The Income Tax Department in the above Writ Petition had explained that the Anti-Corruption Department in Tamilnadu had informed them that the agricultural income declared by the Assessee namely A1-Jayalalitha was inflated and not a reason one and thereby the Department decided to re-open the earlier Assessments. The Assessing Authority after re-opening the Assessments for the Assessment years 1987-88 to 1992-93, passed fresh Order partly disallowing the agricultural income declared by the Assessee. Against the Reassessment Orders passed by the Assessing Authority, the Assessee preferred separate Appeals before the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals). The Appellate Authority after hearing the Assessee by a Common Order on 31.03.2002, deleting the disallowance made by the Assessing Authori ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... trict Valuation Officer. At page Nos. 15 to 17 of the Orders passed by the Appellate Authority vide Ex. D63, they find the comparative table of the above Reports. The comparative table shows that apart from the value of structures, the value of one Lift, Generators, Electrical Appliances, Air Conditioners, Refrigerator etc. shown in the Registered Valuer's Report almost tallied with the Report of the District Valuation Officer. The difference was only regarding the cost of marbles used for the said construction. The appellate Authority gave a direction to the Assessing Authority to verify the cost of marbles with reference to the bills submitted by A1-Jayalalitha and to submit Report regarding the said marbles. The Assessing Authority visited the premises of the marble suppliers in Bombay. The names of the said Marble Suppliers are: 1) M/s. Simplex Enterprises. 2) M/s. New Diamond Granite Exports. 3) M/s. Pashupathi Granites Pvt. Ltd. 4) M/s. Elegant Marbles and Grani Industries Ltd. The Assessing Authority issued Summons to the above suppliers and recorded their Sworn Statements. The Assessing Authority also collected copies of the Invoices raised by the above Marble ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... diture incurred for the above marriage to the tune of around Rs. 97,00,000/-. The above expenditure of Rs. 97,00,000/- was spread over under four heads namely: 1) Compliments given along with Invitations 2) Decoration of the marriage site. 3) Decoration on the procession route. 4) Food expenses to Party Members. With regard to the expenditure charged under the head "compliments given along with Invitations", six persons immediately after the above marriage confirmed to the Income Tax Department that they had received the compliments along with Invitation, from one V. Bhaskaran. Further three more persons confirmed the same during the Assessment Proceedings. The said V. Bhaskaran had also addressed a Letter to the Assessing Authority. The said Letter was produced by him before the Assessing Authority during the Assessing Authority during the Assessment Proceedings. Certified Copy of that Letter dated 18.03.1999 is available in the file produced before the Court by the Income Tax Department as per Ex. D69. The said V. Bhaskaran is the elder brother of the bridegroom namely V.N. Sudhakaran (A3). Hence, the 1st Appellate Authority held that the expenditure charged under this ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 000/- done by the Appellate Authority, as being done without any basis. The Tribunal also dismissed the Appeals filed by the Revenue. At the time, when A1-Jayalalitha acquired the Grape Garden in Jedimetla near Hyderabad, there existed an old Farm House in it. A1-Jayalalitha constructed a new Farm House thereafter. The old farm house was not renovated by her during the check period. When the District Valuation Officer visited the said Grape Garden during the year 1997 in connection with valuation of the Farm House, he was present as a Representative of the Assessee namely A1-Jayalalitha. During the said inspection, the District Valuation Officer observed that no renovation was done by A1-Jayalalitha to the said Farm House. The New Farm House which was built by A1-Jayalalitha was valued. The Income Tax Authorities on the basis of valuation Report submitted by the District Valuation Officer completed the assessment on the premise that new Farm house was constructed by A1-Jayalalitha in the said Grape Garden and there was no renovation of the old Farm House. One Mr. Vijayashankar was the Architect for A1-Jayalalitha. He designated the architecture of the Farm House as well as new b ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... x, both the facts and law. On account of late filing of IT Returns by the Assessee, the Assessing Authority imposed penalty under Section 271(1)(b) of IT Act, by Order dated 30.08.1996 passed by him. Against the said Order imposing penalty the Assessee namely A1-Jayalalitha preferred an Appeal before the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) for the late filing of IT Returns against the Order passed by the 2nd Appeal before the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal. A submission was made before the Appellate Tribunal that the delay in filing of IT Returns was due to the negligence on the part of the then Auditors M/s. Rajashekar and Co. It was also submitted before the Appellate Tribunal that the Assessee was holding the post of Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and she had entrusted the job of filing of her IT Returns to her said Auditors. The Appellate Tribunal accepted the explanation/contention of the Assessee and deleted the penalty levied by the Assessing Authority, under its Order dated 11.1.2008 as per Ex. D64. The Assessing Authority had also imposed penalty under Section 271(1)(C) of IT Act for concealment of income by the Assessee and for furnishing of inaccurate particulars of inco ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ed by Income Tax Department before this Court, he Identifies Ex. D209 as the letter dated 1.12.1999 addressed to the assessing officer by the appellate authority, requesting the assessing authority to ascertain the market rates of Marbles and Granites at Mumbai from the suppliers. Pursuant to this letter, the assessing officer had visited Mumbai for ascertaining the rates at which the suppliers supplied Marbles and Granites to A1. He had accompanied the assessing officer. In the records produced before Court by the Income Tax Department he identifies Ex. D210 as the report which was submitted by assessing officer to the appellate authority on 10.12.1999. To the said report, the assessing officer attached the details of quotations given by the suppliers. The said quotations form Annexures 1 to 40 the report Ex. D210. In one of the quotations, the supplier of White Marbles namely M/s. Simplex Enterprises has mentioned that on account of the bulk quantity ordered by Accused No. 1 discount was given regarding the rates of supply of Marble. The Income Tax Authorities enquired the said Simplex Enterprises and other suppliers and recorded their sworn statements. In the assessment proceedi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s before the IT Authorities that the above expenditure was met by the assessee from undisclosed income. The source of income as per returns filed by the assessee was accepted by the IT Authorities, in respect of the above expenditure. Part of the building in No. 31-A Poes Garden had been leased by the assessee in favour of J Jay. TV Pvt. Ltd. Part of the building in Jedi Metla property had been leased by the assessee in favour of A2-Sasikala. Copy of the memorandum of understanding dated 10.12.1994 entered into between A1 Jayalalitha and J. Jay. TV Pvt. Ltd. and copy of memorandum of understanding Dt. 09.07.1994 entered into between A1-Jayalalitha and A2-Sasikala were produced by him before the Deputy Commissioner of Income Tax along with letter dated 26.3.1999. Office copy of the said letter dated 26.3.1999 bearing the stamp seal of Income Tax Department is Ex. D212. Copy of the said memorandum of understanding Dt. 10.12.1994 between A1-Jayalalitha and M/s. J. Jay TV Pvt. Ltd. and copy of memorandum of understanding dated 9.7.1994 between A1-Jayalalitha and A2-Sasikala are Ex. D213 and Ex. D214 respectively. These documents were accepted and acted upon by the Income Tax Authoriti ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... th tax. The IT Authorities gave intimation to the assessee stating that said Vasudevan is not an approved valuer. Copy of the letter dated 16.11.1998 addressed to the Deputy Commissioner of Income Tax; Central Circle-II(2), Chennai is Ex. D215. The intimation dated 31.12.1998 sent by Deputy Commissioner of Income Tax to A1 is Ex. D216. In case where any property is held by an assessee Benami in the name of other person and the IT Authorities on enquiry find that there is such Benami holding of property by the assessee in the names of others, the IT Authorities will treat the assessee as the owner of such property and if assessee is unable to explain the source of income for the acquisition of such property then the IT Authorities will treat the source as undisclosed income and proceed to assess such income. In respect of A1 there was no finding by IT Authorities that A1 was holding any such property or funds Benami i.e. in the names of any other person. The document which is marked as Ex. D69 dated 18.03.1999 is incomplete. Its complete copy is found in Volume No. 10 of the records produced by Income Tax Department. Complete copy of the said document is Ex. D69(A). During the cr ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... t he was present at that time. He has not signed the said Sworn Statement of Mallareddy, as Chartered Accountant of A1. The said Sworn Statement does not mention his name. He does not have any document to show that he was present at Jedi Metla property when Sworn Statement of said Mallareddy was recorded as per Ex. D62 on 12.03.1997 by the Assistant Director of Income Tax, Hyderabad. "Question:- I suggest to you that although you are authorized representative of A1-Jayalalithat and you claim that you have audited her accounts, You did not properly present her case before the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals). What do you say? Ans:- He has now read para-7 of the Order Dt. 11.01.2008 passed in I.T.-Appeals Nos. 1277 and 1836/Mds/97 and connected appeals filed by A1 before the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, Bench-B, Chennai. The appeal was against the imposition of penalty under Section 271(1)(b) of Income Tax Act. The Appellate Authority had observed in para 7 of the above order that the Assessee namely A1 being Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu state and also General Secretary of Political Party at the relevant period was naturally busy with state matters and had entrusted all tax m ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... farm house was commenced and the date on which the said work was completed. He has seen the deeds of partnership pertaining to M/s. Jaya publications and M/s. Sasi Enterprises. M/s. Jaya Publications is carrying on the business of printing and publishing news paper and M/s. Sasi Enterprises was carrying on the business of Secretarial work of Typing, Copying, Fax, and hiring of video Tapes. He was not aware that prior to 27.05.1992 (Date of execution of General Power of Attorney Ex. P995) accused No. 1 herself was looking after the business of M/s. Jaya Publications and M/s. Sasi Enterprises along with A2 Sasikala. He does not know that except Ex. P995 no other General Power of Attorney had been executed by A1. Ex. P995 had been executed by A1 in respect of the business of M/s. Jaya Publications. The said General Power of Attorney was executed during the check period. He has not gone through the title deed pertaining to Jedi Metla property acquired by A1 in the year 1968. He does not know the Survey Number of the said Land. Out of the said land which was acquired by A1, about 10 acres was brought under cultivation. He was not sure that the said Jedi Metla property stood in the na ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of building materials used for construction made in the above mentioned Chennai properties, before the IT Authorities. It is not true to suggest that the valuation report Ex. D67 given by the registered valuers ANBU SIVAM CONSORTUM is not correct and proper. Question:- I suggest to you that the report Ex. D67 was prepared by the above valuer at the instance of A1-Jayalalitha. What do you say? Ans: He said that the said report was prepared by the above valuer for submission before the IT Authorities, at the request of A1." The valuation report Ex. D67 pertains to immovable property only. He was not present when the above property was inspected by the said registered valuer. According to him, against the order passed by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, a further appeal under Section 260-A of the I.T. Act would lie only on question of law but not on question of fact. As against the order at Ex. D64 appeals filed by the Revenue, in IT Appeals No. 1007/Mds/99, IT Appeals No. 428/Mds/2000 and ITA No. 429/Mds/2000 were partly allowed by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, Bench-B Chennai. Under the said order ITA No. 994/Mds/99 filed by the Assessee namely A1 came to be dismissed. Cr ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 997 only after the service of the assessment order. The assessee had got 30 days time for preferring said appeal against the assessment order dated 31.03.1997 for the year 1994-95. He denies the suggestion that A1 did not actually receive agriculture income of Rs. 52.50 Lakhs during the period 1991-1996. The new Farm House was constructed in Jedi Metla property during the check period. He denies the suggestion that DV & AC had correctly estimated the value of new Farm House building in Jedi Metla property in the charge sheet filed before Court. He denies the suggestion that the food expenses during the marriage of A3 were met by assessing the value of the construction of the buildings in property No. 36, Poes Garden and No. 31-A, Poes Garden. He denies the suggestion that persons referred in Ex. D46 and Ex. D69 made false statements before the Income Tax Department. He further denies the suggestion that there was no contribution from the party workers of AIADMK Party for meeting the decoration expenses etc., during the marriage of A3-Sudhakaran. He also denies the suggestion that those expenses were actually met by A1 and she did so for the reason that A3 is her fostered son. He d ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the work referred therein, equally or in proportions. Ex. D214 which is another memorandum of understanding dated 09.07.1994 has not been drawn on a stamp paper. Even in this document there is no mention as to the manner in which the investment is to be made by the parties thereto for the execution of the work/project referred therein. He does not know whether any final accounting was made and accepted between the parties to Ex. D214. He was not aware whether Dindugal Srinivasan (DW. 91) had made any claim over the Gold Mementos referred in Ex. D250 and Ex. D250-A, stating that those items belong to AIADMK Party and they are to be returned to the party, in between the date of seizure of those items by DV & AC and the date on which the statement of DW. 91 was recorded before the IT Authorities. The letter as per Ex. D250 along with the list Ex. D250-A was addressed by the said Dindigal Srinivasan to the Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax, Central Circle-II(2), Chennai on 19.03.2003. Accused No. 1 was also a partner in M/s. Shastri Enterprises. He was not aware that during the check period the said M/s. Sasi Enterprises have also acquired certain properties. Ex. P8 is a sale deed ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... /s. Jaya Publication with Indian Bank, Abiramapuram Branch. He denies the suggestion that A1 had not appointed him as her auditor at any point of time. He has not looked into the evidence given by DW. 2 Natarajan before this Court. He denies the suggestion that he has deposed falsely before Court and that he has done so in order to help accused No. 1. He denies the suggestion that Ex. D213 and Ex. D214 are concocted documents. N.R. Sandhya referred by him in his evidence is mother of A1. The said N.R. Sandhya died in the year 1971. The acceptability or otherwise of the registered valuers' report was decided by the IT Authorities after verification and after receiving evidence in that behalf. The memorandum of understanding Ex. D213 pertains to the assessment year 1995-96. The expenditure statement which was submitted before the Assessing Officer by A1 in respect of user right granted to M/s. J. Jay TV was accepted by the Assessing Officer as there was no contradiction between the Assessee and M/s. J. Jay TV. Had Assessing Officer not accepted the above expenditure statement submitted by A1, the amount spent by M/s. J. Jay TV would have treated as unexplained investment and sam ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tems like marbles, granites, tiles, one has to carry the sample and obtain quotation from three different suppliers and adopt the lowest rates quoted by those suppliers. In the present case, value of such non schedule items has not been determined as required. Ex. P675 is the valuation report pertaining to building in Guindy Industrial Estate. His signature was not found in the Ex. P675. He did not sign the abstract sheet for the reason figures shown therein could not be compared to the figures shown in the working sheet. Ex. P674 is the valuation report pertaining to workers shed in Guindy Industrial Estate. He did not sign the Ex. P674 for the reason that he was not provided details, measurements and working sheets for comparison. During cross examination, he denied the suggestion that determining valuation of buildings, elevation, cross sections are not necessary. He denied the suggestion that it is not necessary to attach S.R. Rates to the valuation report. He agreed that the marble granites and tiles were non schedule items even during the year 1993-94. DW. 76 - M. Shanmugam has deposed that during the year 1996 he was working as Assistant Engineer. PW. 98 Velayudhan Execu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n different dates. Valuation report was not prepared in consultation with him. The measurement sheets, working sheets, plan, cross section details referred to in Ex. P641 to Ex. P645 are not attached to the respective reports. Cost of construction will be less in rural area than city area. Andhra Pradesh PW. D schedule rates were not available to them. They adopted the S.R. Rates of Tamilnadu for determining the value of the building at Jedi Metla. Age of building was 15 years prior to the date of examination. Team members inspected the old building. In the Ex. P645, valuation report, the cost of renovation in respect of whole building is mentioned as Rs. 55,15,984/-. They did not obtain quotation in respect of marbles, granites, wall cladding tiles for determining the value of the work in respect of non schedule items. In Ex. P645, there is an error in mentioning the value. Quantity of work is 625 meters square. The rate is Rs. 5,000/- per meter square. 825 x 5000 will be Rs. 41,25,000/-. But the value mentioned as Rs. 82,50,000/- in the abstract. There is arithmetical error in calculating the value. He had no knowledge of valuing the Korean grass flower garden and curb walls. He ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... addressed by him to the Assistant Director of Income Tax (Investigation) Unit-III (1), Madras-34. To the said letter, he also enclosed the list of persons who gave contributions and also the details of the amounts spent. The contributors referred in Ex. D137(a) were called by the Income Tax Authorities and enquired. The said contributors gave information to the IT Authorities and confirmed the contribution made by them. His sworn statement was also recorded by the IT Authorities on 5.3.1999 as per Ex. D138. He also produced the Expenditure Bills before the IT Authorities. One of the bills produced is found at Page No. 52 of volume No. 9 of documents produced by the IT Authorities before this Court as per Ex. D.151. The contributors referred in Ex. D137 and also the contractors who executed the decoration and other works for the said procession way were also enquired by the IT Authorities. He was produced 27 bills which had been given to him by various contractors. Those bills are Ex. D152(1) to Ex. D152(27). On 04.09.1995 He made application to the Corporation Authorities seeking permission for fixing Light Arches, Tube Lights, Cut-Outs, Flags, Banners etc. on the procession way ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ith the marriage of V.N. Sudhakaran (A3) but he only collected the contributions and spent that amount. He also denies the suggestion that he has falsely stated before the Court that the contribution to the tune of Rs. 15,10,000/- were collected by him in connection with the marriage of V.N. Sudhakaran (A3). He further denies the suggestion that on account of he being a member of AIADMK Party of which A1 is General Secretary, he has falsely deposed before the Court to help accused. He denies the suggestion that Ex. D137(a) is a concocted document submitted to the IT Authorities. He denies the suggestion that he made a false statement before the IT Authorities as per Ex. D138 and that he did so to help the accused. The said sworn statement was recorded by the IT Authorities on 05.03.1999. He denies the suggestion that on account of registration of the present case much earlier to the date of Ex. D138, he made false statement before the IT Authorities to save the accused. DW.-77 recalled and re-examined. He had taken the help of many people for decorating the procession route. His correct name is K.R. V Ramani. By mistake in the deposition his name is typed as A.R.V Ramani. DW. 78 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... lectricity arrangements will not be included. In case of valuation of new buildings, the value of external water supply, sanitary arrangements will be determined at 7.5% of the total cost of the building. In case of renovation of building, internal water supply, internal sanitary arrangements, internal electricity supply, in respect of existing building, will not be included. Ex. P672 does not mention the basis of the valuation of furniture. Age of furniture is not mentioned. In Ex. P671 against several items it is mentioned lump sum. The lump sum value is only presumptive value. Out of the said 29 acres, the value assigned for 21 items is a presumptive value. In Ex. P672, complete measurement of the building, namely, basement, ground floor and other floors are not mentioned. In the absence of such details and measurement, it is not possible to arrive at correct quantum of value incorporated in the report. By looking at Ex. P671 and Ex. P672 it is not possible to mention the correct quantum of value. In the abstract pertaining to compound wall, only quantity is mentioned and not measurement in running feet in Ex. P671. By looking at marble, granites slab, it is not possible to say ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tructed. He cannot say whether side wall was constructed in the ground floor at the time of inspection. He has further deposed that RCC column was raised to the height of 2.70 meters. Since the plan of the building was not attached, he cannot say the basis on which the area of the building was determined and mentioned in Ex. P667. Detail measurements sheet was not attached to Ex. P667 valuation report. About four months time was required for construction of basement floor. The schedule rates comprises of brick, sand, jelly, wood and labor. During their inspection, they did not ascertain as to what would have been the stage of construction as on 30.4.96. During 24.10.96 and 25.10.96, the Team inspected the property bearing No. 1/240, Enjambakkam, New Mahabalipuram Road, Opp. To VGP Golden Beach, Chennai. The valuation report is not prepared with consultation of the Team Members. At the time of the inspection of the building, construction was still going on. During inspection, they prepared drawing of the building. The said building drawing is not forthcoming in the records. The detailed calculation of the areas mentioned in page 7 of Ex. P668 is not available. He cannot say the bas ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 0- B. Vasudevan was working as Junior Engineer (Retd.) PW. D in Madras. Ex. P.1019 is the valuation report. He did not see any photographs or video-graphs of said marriage Pandal. No drawings pertaining to the said marriage Pandal and stage were given by Vijaya Shankar-Architect. He does not know where the said marriage Pandal was put up. The investigation officer told him that the said marriage Pandal was put up in MRC Nagar, Chennai. He said that the measurements mentioned in Ex. P.1019 are based on the instructions of the investigation officer. In the said report, the bifurcation of VIP portion and Non-VIP portion in the name marriage Pandal was not done by him. He said that the same was done at the instance of the Investigation Officer. He did not really obtain the details of Rose Wooden chairs etc. He did not see any artificial fountain or Korean grass. The details regarding Arches, Illuminations, Electric Bulbs and Generators referred in Ex. P.1019 were given by I.O. himself. They were required to prepare the report without carrying out any inspection in their office itself. DW. 81- M. Karunakaran was working as Asst. Executive Engineer in PW. D at Thanjavur. During the yea ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... onstruction in a separate sheet of paper. The worksheet is not attached to the report Ex. P.1964. He did not enquire about the ownership of the said property inspected by them. The pipes which are non schedule items are not covered under PW. Ds S.R. List. They did not adopt this procedure while evaluating the pipeline. They did not verify the length, diameter and thickness of the Pipes used in the above work. When they went for inspection, the building was under construction work was going on. During the cross-examination, it is not mentioned that at the time of inspection the team noticed that the construction work had commenced about 2 or 3 weeks prior to the date of inspection. He was not furnished working sheets. DW. 83- R. Senthil Kumar was working as Executive Engineer in Tamil Nadu PW. D Department at Chennai. Ex. P661 pertains to the building in Siruthavur. Ex. P662 pertains to the building at Pyanoor. Ex. P663 pertains to the building bearing No. 487, Jawaharlal Nehru Road, Ekkattuthangal, Chennai. The property referred in Ex. P.661 was inspected by their team from 25.10.1996 to 30.10.1996. The building was under construction. The drawing was not attached to the valuatio ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s taken. But he gave the measurements and drawings to the team leader. The construction of the building might have been commenced about 6 months earlier to the date of inspection. Whenever Teak Wood or Country Wood is used in the construction of the building the PW. D will notify the rates of said wood every year. In Ex. P.663 there is no specific mention that the building referred therein might have been constructed about 15 years prior to the date of inspection. He denies the suggestion that Ex. P.661 to Ex. P.663 have been prepared scientifically after observing all the technicalities and on the basis of the measurements taken at the spot. DW. 84- O.S. Manian is a District Secretary of AIADMK Party for Nagapattinam district. He was also a member of Rajya Sabha at that time. In connection with the marriage of A3-Sudhakaran, he spent for food arrangements. He made the food arrangements for the party workers who attended the said wedding. DW. 25-Thangamuttu and DW. 31-Adhi Rajaram collectively made the said food arrangements for the party workers. He arranged for provisions and vegetables for feeding the said party workers. He was assisted the by one N. Puraswamy, Jeevanandam, Bha ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the said current account of M/s. Super Duper TV Pvt. Ltd. with Indian Bank for the year 1995 and 1996 respectively. M/s. Super Duper TV Pvt. Ltd. had made TV Coverage of the marriage of A3-V. Sudhakaran. For that a sum of Rs. 2,00,000/- was paid by one Mr. Ramakumar to M/s. Super Duper TV Pvt. Ltd. The said Ramkumar is the uncle of the wife of A3. The company is a proprietary concern. The business of said proprietary concern Super Duper TV Pvt. Ltd. continued even after the formation of M/s. Super Duper TV Pvt. Ltd. Ex. D.163 is the Invoice bearing Sl. No. 1 and 2 dated 17.11.1994 raised in favour of M/s. Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation Ltd. for Rs. 4,35,705/- in respect of the equipments supplied by A3-Sudhakaran to the said Tourism Development Corporation, Trichy Branch. In the same Book Invoice Nos. 3 and 4 raised in favour of M/s. Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation Ltd. for Rs. 4,32,105/- in respect of equipments supplied by A3 to Thanjavur Branch of Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation. In the same Book Invoice Nos. 5 and 6 dated 17.11.1995 for Rs. 4,27,505/- are in respect of equipments supplied to Chidambaram Branch of TTDC. The said invoices have b ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... D.171 is the bill dated 29.9.1994 for Rs. 1,00,000/- in favour of M/s. Chettinadu Cement Corporation Ltd. Ex. D.172 is the bill dated 29.9.1994 for Rs. 1,00,000/- in favour of M/s. Balaji Steel Corporation Ltd. Ex. D.173 is the letter dated 29.9.1994 addressed to Super Duper TV by Balaji Steel Corporation Ltd., enclosing Cheque bearing No. 281531 dated 28.9.1994 for Rs. 1,00,000/- in favour of the Manager, Min Bimangal, Mookambika Complex, Alwarpet, Madras towards hire charges. Ex. D.175 is the letter dated 29.11.1994 addressed to M/s. Super Duper TV by Tamil Nadu Handloom Weavers Co-operative Society enclosing tax certificate in respect of the bill dated 7.11.1994. Ex. D.176 is the letter dated 20.10.1994 addressed by Tamil Nadu Film Development Corporation to M/s. Super Duper TV enclosing cheque bearing No. 485856 dated 20.11.1994 for Rs. 1,50,000/-. Ex. D.177 is the letter dated 29.9.1994 addressed by Chettinadu Cement Corporation Ltd. to M/s. Super Duper TV enclosing cheques bearing Nos. 047085 and 047086 dated 29.9.1994 for Rs. 50,000/- each towards advertisement charges. Ex. D.178 is the Invoice Book pertaining to Super Duper TV containing carbon copies of the invoices issue ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... athan deposed that he is a Chartered Accountant by profession. Since then he is associated with Venkataraman and Co.,. He is competent to speak regarding the files handled by Mr. G. Natarajan and Mr. B. Gowthaman. He has seen the documents which are produced before the Court by the Income Tax Department. He filed income tax returns and Balance Sheet for the year ending 31.3.96 filed by M/s. Meadow Agro Farms Ltd., before the Income Tax Department, namely, Central Circle - II[4], Chennai. The Assessing Authority has done the scrutiny of assessment in respect of this returns under section 143(3) of the Income Tax Act. In the Balance Sheet, the assessee has shown Rs. 1,06,55,000/- as share capital. Ex. D187 is the income tax returns. Ex. D188 is the Balance Sheet. The year ending of both these documents is 31.3.96. Along with Balance Sheet, the assessee has filed schedule showing list of shareholders who have contributed share capital amounting to Rs. 1,06,55,000/-. In the said Balance Sheet, a sum of Rs. 32,58,000/- is shown as amount contributed by sundry creditors. The said Balance Sheet would show that M/s. Meadow Agro Farms Ltd., has invested Rs. 21,53,732/- on fixed assets, name ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 0,000/- to M/s. Meadow Agro Farms Ltd., and Rs. 2,00,000/- to Sasi Enterprises. The assessee has received Rs. 41,35,000/- from M/s. Bharani Beach Resorts Pvt. Ltd., by way of share application money. M/s. Lex Property Development Pvt. Ltd., has received Rs. 1,56,67,000/- from M/s. Kalyani Constructions Pvt. Ltd., up to the year ending on 31.3.96. M/s. Lex Property Development Pvt. Ltd., has received a sum of Rs. 45,00,000/- from M/s. Altaf Construction Pvt. Ltd., by the end of the year 1995-96. The monies from M/s. Kalyani Constructions Pvt. Ltd.,, Bharani Beach Resorts and Altaf Construction Pvt. Ltd., were all received by M/s. Lex Property Development Pvt. Ltd. through cheques. The Income Tax Authorities accepted the returns filed by M/s. Lex Property Development Pvt. Ltd.,. During cross examination, he states that requirement of section 224 and 229 of the Companies Act were followed by the Department for appointing Mr. Natarajan, Chartered Accountant as Statutory Auditor of M/s. Meadow Agro Farms Ltd., and River Way Agro Farms Ltd.,. He did not verify the documents relating to fixed assets of the companies. The company followed mercantile method of accounting. The nature of bus ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of the said company as on 31.3.96. According to Ex. D193, Accused No. 3 - Sudhakaran and Accused No. 4 - Ilavarasi were Directors of River Way Agro Products Ltd., as on 31.3.96. Though he was not appointed as Statutory Auditor for the above companies, he did carry on the audit work of the said companies and his name is shown in the letter issued by statutory auditors. M/s. River Way Agro Products Ltd., has carried on business till 1995-96. M/s. Lex Property Development Pvt. Ltd., has received rental income during the period earlier to 1995-96. A perusal of Ex. D195 does not reveal that apart from receiving rental income, M/s. Lex Property Development Pvt. Ltd., has carried on business earlier to 1995-96. DW. 87 - G. Srikanth has deposed that he passed final C.A. Examination during the year 1991. He did articles work with M/s. S. Venkataraman and Co, Chartered Accountants, Chennai during the years 1988 to 1991. Ever since then he has closely associated with the firms of Chartered Accountants namely M/s. S. Venkataraman and Associates and also M/s. G. Natarajan and Associates. He has handled several files for both the said firms. He has done the basic work and other works relating t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... before the Court by Income Tax Department. The said balance sheet forms part of the returns filed by the said company before the Income Tax Department. Ex. D202 is copy of order Dt. 28.08.2000 passed by Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) in Appeal No. 144/1999-2000 preferred by the said company. A reading of this order would show that out of the entire share holding of the value of Rs. 97,00,000/-, 9,69,400/- shares of the face value of Rs. 10/- each were purchased at the rate of Rs. 6/- per share by A.2 N. Sasikala and remaining shares were purchased by 6 other persons. The order further reveals that the entire sale consideration in respect of the above 9,69,400 shares was paid by A.3 Sudagaran. As could be seen from the Profit and Loss statement for the financial years 1994-95 and 1995-96, the said M/s. Indo Doha Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Ltd. had done business to the tune of Rs. 90,00,000/- and Rs. 49,08,584/- (Total = Rs. 1,39,08,584/-) by way of conversion and service charges during the financial years ending on 31.03.1996 and 31.03.1995 respectively. The said Profit and Loss statement for the above years is at Ex. D203. The above amount of Rs. 90,00,000/- had been rec ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... pertaining to the said company is Ex. D207. On the basis of Ex. D206 and Ex. D207 he said that M/s. Ramraj Agro Mills Ltd. had spent a sum of Rs. 62,57,000/- towards construction during the year 1994-95 and 1995-96. From the said documents it can be further said that the said company had received Rs. 1,43,87,336/- by way of secured loan from Banks and financial institutions during the year 1994-95. The said company had also received unsecured loan to the extent of Rs. 75,30,561/- during the said year. During the year 1995-96 the said company had received a sum of Rs. 1,00,00,000/- from Maguntha Investments. The said Maguntha Investments had issued a confirmation letter as per Ex. D208 on 08.02.1996. From the schedule to the balance sheet for the year 1995-96 it can be said that during that year the said company had received back a sum of Rs. 40,00,000/- placed as deposit during earlier years. The above money transactions are carried through Banking and Financial Institution and by cheques. From these records, He could only say that the above accused have not pumped any funds into the said company for the acquisition of the above properties. From the above financial statements, it ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of the accounts of M/s. Signora Business Enterprises Pvt. Ltd., since those papers are signed only by the statutory auditors. The audit report pertaining to M/s. Signora Business Enterprises Pvt. Ltd. does not make a mention of his name. He does not know whether there is any difficulty for the partners of M/s. S. Venkataraman and Co. and M/s. Nataraj Associates to appear before this court and give evidence on behalf of respective firms. The said firms have not issued any letter of authorization in his favour for giving evidence in this case on their behalf. From Ex. P590 he said that Mr. Narayana Rao and Mr. V. Sai Basker Reddy who were directors of M/s. Signora Business Enterprises Pvt. Ltd. ceased to be directors from 29.08.1994. Accused No. 3 Sudagaran and Accused No. 4 Ilavarasi were made additional directors of said company on 17.08.1994 as per Ex. P590. On the date of execution of sale deed Ex. P33 Dt. 31.01.1994 accused Nos. 3 and 4 were not the directors of M/s. Signora Business Enterprises Pvt. Ltd. The names of the directors who represented M/s. Signora Business Enterprises Pvt. Ltd. under Ex. P33 is not mentioned. From the said document, it was not possible for him to ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he Profit and Loss account of M/s. Indo Doha Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals as per Ex. D203 for the year ending on 31.03.1995 and 31.03.1996. Similarly in the balance sheet Ex. D201 the name of Southern Petro Chemical Industries Corporation is not mentioned. During the audit of the accounts of M/s. Indo Doha Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals he went through the document that was executed between Indo Doha Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals he went through the document that was executed between Indo Doha Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Ltd. and Southern Petro Chemical Industries Corporation. He was not in possession of that document. He could not recollect the date of execution of the above document namely lease deed and also the term of lease, at this point of time. The lease amount was Rs. 7,50,000/- per month. He had not submitted copy of the lease deed to the Income Tax Department. He does not know the purpose for which M/s. Indo Doha Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Ltd. had advanced Rs. 25,00,000/- to M/s. Meadow Agro Farms Ltd. and Rs. 20,00,000/- was advanced by said Indo Doha Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals to one Jame Fredric. He does not know that M/s. Meadow Agro Farms Ltd. was not a si ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... td. for making repayment to the tune of Rs. 46,66,424/- to SIPCOT during the year 1995-96? Ans:- In the balance sheet Ex. D201 a sum of Rs. 20,36,618/- is shown as reserve and surplus available with M/s. Indo Doha Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals during the year 1994-95 and a sum of Rs. 69,13,037/- is shown as reserve and surplus available with M/s. Indo Doha Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals in the year 1995-96. The difference amount is Rs. 48,76,419/-. With this amount M/s. Indo Doha Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Ltd. could repay the loan to SIPCOT to the tune of Rs. 46,66,424/- during the year 1995-96." There is no specific mention in Ex. D201 that M/s. Indo Doha Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Ltd. made repayment to the tune of Rs. 46,66,424/- to M/s. SIPCOT during the year 1995-96. They did not physically verify the fixed assets of M/s. Indo Doha Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Ltd. as shown in Ex. D201. The said figure was mentioned on the basis of the invoices pertaining to those fixed assets and the entries in the fixed assets register. The said invoices and the fixed assets register for the years 1994-95 and 1995-96 pertaining to M/s. Indo Doha Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Ltd. ar ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI-for short) in the maintenance of accounts. All the income and all items of expenditure were shown in the profit and loss account of the said company. The balance sheet which is produced before the Court is not accompanied by the bills and vouchers pertaining to income and expenditure. There are no prior period items of income and expenditure, shown in the balance sheet pertaining to M/s. Indo Doha Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Ltd. for the assessment year 1995-96 and 1996-97. Other than the items shown in the balance sheet, there were no claims against the said company. No personal expenses were claimed in the said account of M/s. Indo Doha Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Ltd. During the process of auditing he verified each bill and voucher pertaining to the transactions of the said company. He has obtained a certificate from M/s. Indo Doha Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Ltd. to the effect that no cash payment has been made in respect of any payment in excess of Rs. 20,000/-. The said certificate is not enclosed to the balance sheet. He did not have the Permanent Account Number and I.T. Returns of A.2 Sasikala and A.4 Ilavarasi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ned the Cash Book, Journal Register, Stock Register, General Ledger, Records for Agricultural Income, etc. and drew Ex. P.217-Special Audit Report. He can identify Exs. D.218, D.219 and D.220, copies of the IT returns filed by M/s. Jaya Publications for the assessment years 1991-92 to 1994-95 on 6.11.1998. Ex. D.221, D.222, D.223 are copies of the IT returns for the assessment years 1995-96 and 1996-97. Balance sheet for the assessment years, 1994-95, 1995-96, 1996-97 are not available in the records produced by the Income Tax Department. Hence, he has produced the attested copy of the balance sheet and profit and loss account of Jaya Publications for the years ending on 31.3.1994, 31.3.1995 and 31.3.1996. They are at Exs. D.224 to D.226. During the scrutiny of accounts, IT authorities required the assessee to produce the list of subscribers of the above mentioned deposit scheme. The said lists were produced by the assessee. From the said list, the IT authorities segregated the names of the subscribers district-wise and sent the same to the respective District IT authorities for verification. In turn, the respective Income Tax Officers of the Districts summoned the subscribers and ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 2/2001-02. The appellate authority passed on order on 28.3.2002. With regard to the assessment for the years, 1994-95 to 1996-97, the Assessing Officer summoned the subscribers of all the districts and recorded their sworn statement. The assessing officer passed an order partially allowing the claim made by the assessee in respect of the deposit scheme. Appeal was preferred before the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals). The claim of the assessee was partially accepted. Aggrieved by the same, the assessee preferred an appeal before the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal. The Department also preferred an appeal. After hearing, the appellate tribunal passed a common order, accepting the claim of the assessee regarding the deposit scheme except in respect of 41 deposits. In respect of 41 depositors, the case was remanded to the assessing officer with a direction to give an opportunity to the assessee to cross-examine those 41 depositors. That remanded enquiry is respect of 41 depositions is still pending. The said order passed by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal on 30.11.2007 in IT Appeal Nos. 1130/Mds/2003, 1151, 1152, 1153, 1154/Mds/02 and 1693/Mds/03 in respect of assessment years 19 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... in respect of assessment years 1994-95 to 1999-00 is available in Volume No. 3 of the records produced by the Income Tax Department as per Ex. D234. The total amount received by Jaya Publications under the above deposit scheme from its subscribers is Rs. 14,23,89,000/-. This figure is mentioned in the orders passed by the Commissioner of Income Tax in the appeals filed before him, and the order passed by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal. The above amount had been collected from the subscribers by the Jaya Publication in cash during the period of 6 years and the amounts so collected used to be remitted to Bank accounts of Jaya Publications (Cash Credit Ac. No. 2047 with Canara Bank, Mylapur Branch, Chennai) and Namadu MGR (Current Account No. 1952 with Canara Bank Mylapur Branch). The main sources of income for Jaya Publications were sale of news papers, advertisements and work on printing on job work basis. These incomes have been assessed by the Income Tax Department. As per the profit and loss account statement, the net profit derived by Jaya Publications from the above sources of income during the assessment years 1992-93 to 1996-97 (5 years) was Rs. 1,15,94,848.60 paise. On a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Sasi enterprises. The said M/s. Sasi Enterprises is a partnership firm. The said firm was reconstituted in the year 1990. The partners of reconstituted firm are Tmt. Sasikala (A.2) and Jayalalitha (A.1). The said firm was engaged in the business of providing FAX services, STD services, Xerox services, printing of Building plans, in the name of FAX Universal, to its customers. The said Sasi Enterprises was assessed to Income Tax by Income Tax, Central Circle-II(2), Chennai. The Central Circle-II used to verify each item of income as well as expenditure shown in the statements attached to the returns of the assessee, before passing the assessment order. The said assessment used to be done as provided u/S 143(3) of Income Tax Act. The said M/s. Sasi Enterprises had entered out agricultural operations in the year 1990. In the records produced by the I.T. Authorities, he identifies Ex. D.258 found in Volume -8, as attested copy of lease agreement dated 01.09.1991 entered into between M/s. Sasi Enterprises and the said TSR Vasudevan. In the same records i.e. Volume No. 8, he identifies Ex. D.259 as copy of certificate issued by the Tahsildar of Villupuram to the effect that the lands m ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... to the effect that a sum of Rs. 40,000/- was paid as advance to M/s. Sasi Enterprises in respect of a property at Maharkombu, Thanjavur taken on lease by the said Bhaskaran. He said that the said property is a house property. In the Balance Sheet cum profit and Loss account for the accounting year ending on 31.03.1992 i.e., Ex. D.263 pertaining to M/s. Sasi Enterprises a sum of Rs. 5,40,700/- is shown as agricultural income. The receipt of said agricultural income by M/s. Sasi Enterprises has been accepted by the I.T. Authorities as reflected at page. 16 of the order Ex. D.262. In the balance sheet Ex. D.263 under the head "Details of Loans and advances" a sum of Rs. 3,70,000/- is shown as balance amount due by Mrs. Nagammal. In the previous year's balance sheet namely Ex. D.261 pertaining to the year ending on 31.03.1991, under the head "Details of Loans and Advances" a sum of Rs. 8,20,000/- is shown as amount due from Mrs. Nagammal. This would mean that during the accounting year ending on 31.03.1992 M/s. Sasi Enterprises had received Rs. 4,50,000/- towards repayment of loan from Mrs. Nagammal and this aspect has been accepted by I.T. Authorities in the order Ex. D.262. The ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... and an amount of Rs. 1,41,400/- as rental income derived from shops and house property. In the same document that total annual income is shown as Rs. 1,94,806/-. Under the same statement of income, a sum of Rs. 10,20,000/- is shown as income from capital gains, got by the sale of plant and Machinery tools, Dies and Condemned Stores of erstwhile TANSI Enameled wire. These aspects were accepted by the assessing authority under the assessment order Ex. D.269 dt: 19.03.1999. Ex. D.270 is attested copy of the acknowledgement issued by the Income Tax Department for the receipt of returns along with statement of income, balance sheet and profit and loss account for the year ending on 31.03.1995 (assessment year 1995-96) from M/S Sasi Enterprises on 20.09.1997. In the said statement of income a profit is shown as Rs. 44,895/-. A sum of Rs. 1,69,600/- is shown as income from house property. A sum of Rs. 27,42,869/- is shown as term loan received from Indian Bank. On the basis of the above returns filed for the year ending on 31.03.1995, an assessment order came to be passed on 30.03.1999 as per Ex. D.271. Ex. D.272 is attested copy of the acknowledgment issued by the I.T. Authorities reg ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ing to M/s. Shastri Nuts, plates Manufacturers Pvt. Ltd. and M/s. Jaya Publications, on lease. The printing machines which are owned by M/s. Anjaneya Printers Pvt. Ltd. have been purchased from M/s. Uni offset printers, M/s. Amar Enterprises, M/s. Ideal packaging and M/s. Tamil Arasi Achagam. Ex. D.236, Ex. D.237 and Ex. D.238 are attested copies of the invoices pertaining to the printing machines purchased by M/s. Anjaneya Printers Pvt. Ltd. from the said suppliers. Ex. D.276 is attested copy of invoice pertaining to printing machine purchased by M/s. Anjaneya Printers Pvt. Ltd. from Tamil Arasi Achagam. The said M/s. Anjaneya Printers Pvt. Ltd. is an assessee of income tax and the assessment is done by Central Circle-II(2), M/s. Anjaneya Printers Pvt. Ltd. in Chennai came to be searched by the income Tax Department. After the said search M/s. Anjaneya Printers Pvt. Ltd. filed income tax returns. In volume No. 7 of the documents produced before court by the Income Tax Department he identifies Ex. D.277 as attested copy of acknowledgement issued by Income Tax Department for the receipt of returns along with Income Tax Adjustment Statement, Balance Sheet, Trading profit and Loss Acc ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 0 for accounting year 1993-94 Rs. 30,30,284/- for the accounting year 1994-95 Rs. 22,30,285/- for the accounting year 1995-96 Rs. 04,31,069/- for the period 01.04.1996 to 30.09.1996 In the same statement M/s. Anjaneya Printers Pvt. Ltd. show that Rs. 43,18,810/- Rs. 31,64,964/- and Rs. 35,50,218/- as the amounts due by way of over draft to the Banks for the financial years ending on 31.03.1995, 31.03.1996 and the period 01.04.1996 to 30.09.1996. They have also shown Rs. 52,47,200/- Rs. 50,98,749/- and Rs. 56,51,868/- as the amounts due by them way of term loans to the Banks for the years ending on 31.03.1995, 31.03.1996 and the period 01.04.1996 to 30.09.1996 respectively. In the same statement M/s. Anjaneya Printers Pvt. Ltd. have declared that they have taken unsecured loans from V.N. Sudhakaran (A-3) director of M/s. ANjaneya Printers Pvt. Ltd. and that they are due Rs. 09,87,260/- Rs. 09,88,000/- and Rs. 09,88,000/- for the years ending on 31.03.1995, 31.03.1996 and the period 01.04.1996 to 30.09.1996 respectively to the said creditor namely V.N. Sudhakaran (A-3). Accused No. 2 Sasikala was carrying on the business of Video Coverage and giving of Video equipment ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tal King from its customers in the form of Cash, Cheques and DDs. In the same book the entries would show that during the period from 10.02.1996 to 29.02.1996 a sum of Rs. 4,48,487-70 paise had been received by Metal King from its customers in the form of Cash, Cheques and DDs. The same book further reveals that during the month of March 1996 Rs. 2,73,615/- had been received by Metal King from its customer in the form of Cash, Cheque and DDs. Accused No. 2 Sasikala is an Income Tax Assessee. From the year 1991-92, the accounts of A-2 are being examined by Income Tax Central Circle-II(2), Chennai. The assessing authority would examine each entry pertaining to receipt or payment shown in the statements of profit and loss account by the assessee, before passing the order of assessment. Accused No. 2 had filed her I.T. Returns for the assessment year 1991-92. Ex. D.287 is the acknowledgment given by I.T. Authorities for the receipt of I.T. Returns from the said Assessee along with statement of income and other enclosures which are appended to the said acknowledgment. According to the statement of income filed by the assessee the cash on hand as on 31.03.1991 was Rs. 4,35,622-60 paise. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... as per Ex. D.292 setting aside the order passed by the revisional authority, and giving a direction to the Assessing Authority to pass fresh order in the light of the observations made in the order of appellate authority. Thereafter the assessing authority passed fresh order dt: 03.01.2008 for the assessment year 1994-95 as per Ex. D.293. Under this order, the Assessing Authority accepted Rs. 24,99,005/- as revised total income of the Assessee (including Agricultural income) for the assessment year 1994-95 and directed for payment of Rs. 9,79,826/- as the balance income tax payable by the assessee. The assessee had not filed her I.T. Returns for the assessment year 1995-96. In the year 1997 the Government of India introduced voluntary disclosures of income scheme. After the introduction of this scheme the assessee filed her I.T. Returns for the assessment year 1995-96 on 23.12.1997, under the above scheme. In the said returns the Assessee made voluntarily disclosures of her income for the assessment year 1995-96 as 58,06,667/- and paid the tax. (Since the copy of voluntary declaration of income which is produced by accused does not bear the seal of the I.T. Authorities, the same ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the investigation agency he identifies Ex. D.301 as copy of the sale agreement dt: 18.02.1995 executed by A.2 Sasikala in favour of M/s. River Way Agro Pvt. Ltd. in respect of lands. He prepared the original sale agreement. Under the said agreement, the sale price fixed for the above property was Rs. 80 lakhs. Amongst the unmarked documents produced by the Investigation agency he identifies Ex. D.302 as copy of the sale agreement dt: 08.04.1995 executed by A.2 Sasikala in favour of M/s. Meadow Agro Farm Pvt. Ltd. in respect of lands. He prepared the original sale agreement. Under the said agreement the sale price fixed for the above property was Rs. 80 lakhs. Out of that A.2 received Rs. 50 lakhs as advance under the said agreement. Kodanadu Tea Estate is a partnership firm. Accused No. 2 Sasikala, Accused No. 3 Sudagaran and Accused No. 4-Ilvavarasi were its partner during the years 1995-96 and 1996-97. The said firm owns tea estate called Kodanadu Tea Estate. Initially one Greig Jones and others were the partners in the said firm. Later on Tmt. Radha Venkatachalam and others became the partners of the said firm. Subsequently, A.2 to A4 became the partners. In the year 1995 A.2 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nch-C) Chennai in the I.T. Appeal No. 1616/Mds/2007 preferred by said Tmt. Susheela Ramaswamy. The appellate authority held that NRNR Deposit of said Tmt. Susheela Ramaswamy was not taxable in India. Ex. D.375 is copy of I.T. Returns submitted by A.2 Sasikala for the Assessment year 1995-96 on 23.12.1997, together with acknowledgement issued by the Commissioner of Income Tax. He has verified the accounts of M/s. J. Farm House and M/s. Green Farm House. EX.D.376 is the confirmation letter dt: 6.7.2013 issued by Housing and Real Estate Developers Pvt. Ltd. to the effect that they had advanced loan of Rs. 25 lakhs in favour of M/s. J. Farm House through Cheque drawn on Tamil Nadu Mercantile Bank, Annal Salai Branch, Chennai during the year 1995-96. Ex. D.377 is letter dt: 06.07.2013 issued by Housing and Real Estate Developers Pvt. Ltd. to the effect that they had advanced loan of Rs. 25 lakhs in favour of M/s. Green Farm Housing through cheque drawn Tamil Nadu Mercantile Bank, Annal Salai Branch, Chennai during the financial year 1995-96. The said M/s. J. Farm House and M/s. Green farm house have declared about the said loans obtained by them from Housing and Real Estate Developers ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... .2013 when he was examined before this Court he had not brought the said letter dated 10.06.2013. He has handled the accounts of M/s. Jaya Publications and M/s. Sasi enterprises from the Assessment year 1992-93. He had done internal audit work for these firms. No letter of appointment was issued either by M/s. Jaya Publications or by M/s. Sasi Enterprises appointing him as their internal auditor. M/s. G. Nataraj Associates were appointed as auditors after the year 1996 by M/s. Jaya publications and M/s. Sasi Enterprises. A.2 Sasikala had appointed him as her auditor for handling her personal accounts in the year 1992. In respect of tax cases only, M/s. S. Venkataram and Co., had been appointed as their representatives by M/s. Jaya Publications and M/s. Sasi Enterprises. There need not be an order of appointment regarding appointment of appointment regarding appointment of auditors for auditing accounts of firm. In the year 1996 Accused No. 2 Sasikala appointed M/s. G. Nataraj and Associates as her auditor. He has seen the deed of partnership pertaining to M/s. Jaya Publications. The said firm has been registered under partnership Act. He could not furnish the registration number ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ts made through cash are not supported by any outside document or evidence and that they are only supported by internally made vouchers with payee's signature. Three is also further observation para. 3 of said Annexure-II that payments above Rs. 500/- are not stamped as required under Indian Stamp Act. In Annexure No. VI to Ex. D.217 there is an observation that there are no records to show the production/yield form the land. Hence the auditors are unable to comment on the yield and production. The returns as per Ex. D.218 to Ex. D.220 were all filed on 06.11.1998, whereas the returns as per Ex. D.221 and Ex. D.222 were filed 17.03.1998 and 17.03.1999 respectively. The returns as per Ex. D.218 to Ex. D.222 were all prepared by him. He has not signed any of those returns, as they have to be signed and verified only by the Assessee. The return as per Ex. D.223 for the Assessment Year 1996-97 was filed on 17.03.1999. The balance sheet as per Ex. D.224, Ex. D.225 and Ex. D.226 for the years ending on 31.03.1994, return. Ex. D.224 to Ex. D226 does not bear the Date, Seal and Signature of the Income Tax Department. Ex. D.228 does not bear the seal and signature of M/s. Jaya Publicat ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... aya Publications had income from the sale of Namadhu MGR news paper, income from agricultural operations and rental income from properties owned by them. Thereby the income was dealt under 3 divisions. UPL account means un-posted Ledger Account. He has seen the original lease agreement between Mr. T.S.R. Vasudevan and M/s. Jaya Publications in respect of the lease of agricultural lands. A copy of that lease agreement had been produced I.T. Authorities. The original is still with M/s. Jaya publications. There is an observation that learned counsel representing the Assessee informed the Assessing Officer vide his letter dt: 23.03.2001 that the original lease agreement kept in a cardboard box in Tata Sumo vehicle parked in a hotel was found missing and a complaint was lodged with the police in that connection. He could not say as to how many of the 9,000 subscription deposit subscribers of Namadhu MGR news paper's subscription deposit scheme, had subscribed Rs. 18,000/-. If he can verify the records and count, then he would be in a position to tell the time. He has seen all the said 9,000 applications of the subscribers of the said scheme. He has not put his initials on the said ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... als available on record. The Assessee preferred appeal against the said order dt: 06.03.1998 and the appeal came to be allowed on 15.09.1998 and thereafter the Assessee submitted the return on 06.11.1998. In this case also copies of documents were produced before the Assessing Officer by the Assessee. He had worked for G. Narayanaswamy Chartered Accountant. There is separate Bank account in the name of M/s. Namadhu MGR news paper. There was no change in the nature of business carried on by M/s. Jaya Publications after the re-constitution of firm. Agricultural operations were being carried on by M/s. Jaya Publications in the name of Sapthagiri Farm. The said Sapthagiri Farm is not an individual entity. Separate accounts have been maintained in respect of Sapthagiri Farm. He denies the suggestion that there was no lease agreement between Mr. T.S.R. Vasudevan and M/s. Jaya Publications. M/s. Nataraj Associates had been appointed as auditors for M/s. Sasi Enterprises in the year 1996. M/s. S. Venkataram and Co., were attending the tax matters pertaining to M/s. Sasi Enterprises he has seen the deed of partnership pertaining to Sasi Enterprises. The said firm is a registered partnersh ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ttached to the balance sheet in respect of the above two entries, since the transactions are few. He has not physically verified the Fixed Assets mentioned in the Ex. D.61. He has only verified the invoices and documents. Before this court the partners of M/s. Sasi Enterprises have not produced documents relating to Fixed Assets. In the said balance sheet Ex. D.261 a sum of Rs. 70,91,000/- is shown against the head "Loans and Advances". The confirmation letters regarding loans and advances were produced before the I.T. Authorities but not before this court. No interest was charged on the above amount of Rs. 70,91,000/-. The said loans and advances were repaid to the Assessee subsequently. The order Ex. D.262 pertains to the Assessment year 1992-93. M/s. Sasi Enterprises had not filed return of income for the said year in time. The Assessing officer issued notice under Section 148 of I.T. Act on 15.02.1994 calling upon the Assessee to file the return and on account of non compliance with that notice, the Assessing Officer passed the order on 09.02.1996 under Sec. 144 of I.T. Act against the said Assessment Order Assessee filed an Appeal before the Commissioner of Income Tax who by ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... there is no specific mention to the repayment of said advance amount in Ex. D. 267, under the head of "Loans and Advances". In Ex. D.268 which is the certified true copy of the acknowledgement issued by the Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax, Central Circle-II, Chennai for the assessment year 1994-95 the nature of business carried on by the Assessee M/s. Sasi Enterprises is mentioned as ", Job Typing, Fax, Copier Services". In the balance sheet for the year ending on 31.3.1994 of M/s. Sasi Enterprises forming part of Ex. D.268, a sum of Rs. 10 lakhs is shown as the loans received from Namadhu MGR news paper and another amount of Rs. 4 lakhs is show as loan received from Vinod Video Vision. For these loans no interest was paid by M/s. Sasi Enterprises. To his knowledge, for the above loans taken by M/s. Sasi Enterprises no interest was paid. M/s. Sasi Enterprises had not filed return of income for the Assessment year 1994-95 within time. The Assessing Officer issued notice under Section 148 of I.T. Act requiring M/s. Sasi Enterprises to file the returns. Return of income for the Assessment year 1994-95 was filed by M/s. Sasi Enterprises on 01.09.1997. He denies the suggestion th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tted on 26.09.1997. In Ex. D.272 which is acknowledgment for the filing of the return of income for the Assessment year 1996-97 by M/s. Sasi Enterprises, in column No. 14 the nature of business carried on by M/s. Sasi Enterprises is mentioned as Xerox, Job Typing, Fax, Copier Services, Trade Service and Mercantile Export. In the receipts and payments account for the year ending on 31.03.1996 a sum of Rs. 34,42,000/- is shown as loans received by M/s. Sasi Enterprises from the persons mentioned therein. No interest was paid by M/s. Sasi Enterprises for the above loan of Rs. 34,42,000/- without verifying the relevant records, he could not say whether the said loan amount of Rs. 34,42,000/- was repaid by M/s. Sasi Enterprises. In the same receipts and payments account a sum of Rs. 5 lakhs is shown as advance received from the sale of property. That advance is in respect of the sale of Neelankari property. Without verifying the records he could not say what the sale consideration fixed regarding sale of Nelaknkarai property. He had seen the sale agreement but he has forgotten the amount of sale consideration mentioned therein. In the above document a sum of Rs. 25,52,732.37 paisa is sh ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... In all 15 machines had been taken on lease basis by M/s. Anjaneya Printers Pvt. Ltd. from M/S Shastry Nuts plates Manufacturers Pvt. Ltd. between 1994 and September 1996. He does not remember the lease amount. M/s. Anjaneya printers Pvt. Ltd. took 3 machines of M/s. Jaya Publications on lease basis. The lease period was between 1994 and 1996. He does not remember the lease amount. The originals of Ex. D.236 to Ex. D.238 have been produced by M/s. Anjaneya Printers Pvt. Ltd. before the I.T. Authorities. He denies the suggestion that the said documents were not produced by M/s. Anjaneya Printers Pvt. Ltd. before I.T. Authorities. There was no written order issued by M/s. Anjaneya Printers Pvt. Ltd. appointing him for doing internal audit work. A.2 Sasikala orally asked him to do the internal audit work in respect of M/s. Anjaneya Printers Pvt. Ltd. The consolidated balance sheet for the years ending on 31.03.1994, 31.03.1995 and 31.03.1996 is found attached to the acknowledgment Ex. D.277. The date on which the said consolidated balance sheet was prepared and the date on which it was produced before the I.T. Authorities, is not mentioned in the said balance sheet. The said statemen ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n, although those properties had been acquired and disposed of during the relevant previous year. In Ex. D.296 which is a statement of account issued by Housing Real Estates and Development Pvt. Ltd. to A.2 the cheque number is not mentioned. It also does not bear the date on which the statement was prepared. The amount shown in Ex. D.296 was taken as loan by A.2 from Housing Real Estate and Development Pvt. Ltd. Ex. D.297 which is the statement of account issued by Housing Real Estates and Development Pvt. Ltd. in favour of M/s. Metal King does not mention the date on which the statement was prepared. The amount mentioned in Ex. D.297 was taken as loan by A.2 as proprietrix of M/s. Metal King. No interest was paid by A.2 for the loans taken by her and referred in Ex. D.296 and Ex. D.297. As far as he knows the loans referred Ex. D.296 and Ex. D.297 were not repaid by A.2. The cheque numbers mentioned in Ex. D.297 are not mentioned in Ex. D.299. Exs.D.300 to Ex. D.302 are not the originals. They are copies of sale agreements. He has not signed the sale agreements indicating that it is he prepared those sale agreements. The originals are with the Assessee i.e., A.2-Sasikala. Copie ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 376 issued by Housing and Real Estate Developers Pvt. Ltd. does not make mention of the Cheque number under which Rs. 25 lakhs was advanced by them to M/s. J. Farm Houses. The document which is marked as Ex. D.377 issued by Housing and Real Estate Developers Pvt. Ltd. does not make mention of the cheque number under which Rs. 25 lakhs was advanced by them to M/s. Green Farm Housing. Ex. D.376 and Ex. D.377 were obtained on 06.07.2013 after the commencement of his examination in chief since the records were with Income Tax Department. Income Tax department can issue copies of those records pertaining to the transaction referred in Ex. D.376 and Ex. D.377. He denies the suggestion that the documents Ex. D.300 to Ex. D.302, Ex. D.375 to Ex. D.379 are all concocted documents. He further denies the suggestion that at no point of time he audited the accounts of A.2 and that he has deposed falsely before court in order to help the accused. He denies the suggestion that none of the persons referred in the applications, which are available in the files marked as Ex. D.230(1) to Ex. D.230(18) made any deposits with Namadhu MGR news paper and that the amounts referred in the said documents ac ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Printers Pvt. Ltd. purchased the machines. The said M/s. Anjaneya Printers Pvt. Ltd. purchased 3 machines from 3 companies names M/s. Uni Offsets, M/s. Amar Enterprises and M/s. Ideal packaging. There was hire agreement between M/s. Anjaneya Printers Pvt. Ltd. and M/s. Shastri Nuts Plates Manufacturers Pvt. Ltd. with regard to the hiring of machines. Ex. D.236, 237, and 238 are not computer generated copies, they are typed manually. The company seal is not there in the above documents. DW. 90 - E. Jayaraman was working as Manager for Mahasubbulakshmi Kalyana Mandapam, Arumbakam, Chennai since July 1993. The amounts so collected are remitted to the Bank Account of said Kalyana Mandapam, by him. The present rent for 24 hours, is Rs. 40,000/- excluding tax of Rs. 4,994/-. Apart from the rent, they also collect Rs. 15,000/- per day towards maintenance from the customers. If the expenditure towards maintenance exceeds Rs. 15,000/-, the extra amount will be collected from the customer. In the year 1993, A3-Sudhakaran paid Rs. 10,00,000/- to the outgoing partners of above said Kalyana Mandapam. During the cross-examination, he states that he did not remember the names of outgoing partn ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s for security. The names of persons, who contributed for the purchase of mementos referred in Ex. D250(A), have been mentioned on the respective mementos. Those names are not mentioned in Ex. D250(A). In Ex. D250(A) neither the names of the persons who presented mementos to party's General Secretary nor the year in which those mementos were presented, are mentioned. The head office of AIADMK Party is at No. 226/275 AVAI Shanmugam Sali, Royapettah, Chennai-600 014. AIADMK Party is income tax Assessee. The accounts of the party are being audited every year. The receipt of mementos referred in Ex. D250(A) are declared in the account submitted by the party to the Income Tax Authorities. He does not remember as to in which year's statement submitted to the income tax authorities the receipt of mementos referred in Ex. D205(A) is shown by the party. He does not remember whether the said disclosures were made by the party to the Income Tax Department prior to the year 2003. No receipts showing purchase of mementos were given along with the mementos by the persons who presented those mementos to the party's General Secretary. In AIADMK Party the registers are maintained in re ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Rs. 10 Lakhs towards labour cost. In respect of 1st house, the construction was done by him upto 70%, 2nd house to the extent of 40% and in respect of 3rd house, he executed the work up to the level of laying roof slab for ground floor. DW. 93 - Porselvan was working as Assistant Engineer, Tamil Nadu Electricity Board, Alathur (Operations and Maintenance) during 2008. He speaks about supply of electricity for domestic use. He further speaks about application given by one Tmt. S Manimegalai w/o Gangai Amaran seeking service connection to her residential property in S F No. 392/2B in Payyanoor village. Upon receipt of application for electrical connection, they hold inspection of the property and prepare an estimate. The Electrical Contractor who is engaged would do the Wiring work and thereafter they hold inspection and evaluate the work. DW. 94 - A. Mohan was working as Superintendent Engineer, PW. D, Chennai. He speaks about Ex. D.305 file bearing No. BE.4(2)/1871/1996 pertaining to the constitution of team of experts for evaluating the buildings, by the Chief Engineer, PW. D, Chennai. DW. 95-M. Appandarajan has deposed that he was a Civil Engineering Graduate. He has rendered ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... obtained Standard Schedule Rate Book for the year 2012-13, as per Ex. D318. The rate of Granite during the year 1993-94 was more than the rate of Granite in the year of 2012-13. In the year 1993-94, the rate of Granite was Rs. 143/- per Sq.ft. In the year 1994-95, the rate of Granite was between Rs. 143/- and Rs. 155/- per Sq.ft. During the year 1995-96, the rate of Granite was Rs. 155/- to Rs. 175/- per Sq.ft. According to him the valuation of property, done by the experts team in the present case is more than the valuation done by him on the basis of plinth area rate. For the valuation of Export Quality Marble he has adopted the rate for Rs. 80/- per sq.ft., according to the invoices shown to him by the owners. Adanga Marble is inferior to the Export Quality Marble. The value of Adanga Marble was Rs. 23/- per sq.ft. as per the invoices shown to him by the owners. In his report Ex. D306 he has annexed the rate of Marbles and also the methodology of determining the value of the construction. He has given the comparative table in respect of each item of property. For the year 1993-94 the Government had fixed the Plinth Area Rate of construction as per the document Ex. D380. For t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e used those documents for doing his job and later he also applied for the copies of same documents under the Right to Information Act and the information officer issued documents Ex. D314 to Ex. D316 under his attestation on 06.05.2013. The proprietor of Century Granites who had issued EX. D317 has not attached a certificate or other document to show that he is registered trader of all types of Marbles and Granites. He gave his opinion on the request made by the owners of the property. He denies the suggestion that the valuation done by the expert team appointed in the present case is correct and proper. He also denies the suggestion that he has deposed falsely before the Court with a view to help the accused. He further denies the suggestion that he is not competent to issue a report as per Ex. D306. He also denies the suggestion that the documents which produced by him before court are all concocted documents. DW. 96-K.M. Samy @ Madasamy has deposed that in order to show his identity he has brought his passport bearing No. G-1953349 before the Court. In the year 1995-96, He was doing the business of importing Marbles, Cutting Polishing and Trading in the name and style of New D ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... before court he identifies Ex. D321 to Ex. D324 as copies of the invoices pertaining to supply of Marbles made by their firm to Deepti Jewellers, Swaraz Holding Pvt. Ltd., Venkatachalam and Indian Marble Traders made during the year 1996. There is negligible difference with regard to rate of Marbles supplied to A.1 and the Marbles supplied by their firm to the above mentioned purchasers. The I.T. Authorities recorded his Sworn Statement. In Mumbai there is another Marble supplier namely M/s. Simplex Enterprises. He was not sure whether the said Simplex Enterprises is presently doing business in Marbles. M/s. Elegant Marbles in Mumbai are Retail Traders in Marbles. Their firm referred above imports Marbles from foreign countries and carried on the work of cutting, polishing etc., as per requirements in their factory. Sometimes they do local purchase also. In their firm's dealings no cash transactions are involved. During the cross-examination, he has deposed that his partnership namely M/s. New Diamond Granite Exports was registered in the year 1993 at Mumbai. He does not remember the registration number of the said firm. One Architect along with a Trader visited his place at ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... , Chennai. He speaks about the sworn statements of Mr. Palani Chami, Mr. Gandhi Rajan, Mr. Prince Thangavel, Mr. Sundara Pandiyan, Mr. Gopiraj, Mr. Dhanamurthy, Mr. D. Mohan, Mr. Mohd. Ibrahim, Mr. Madurai Kannu, N Selvam, Thotta Tharani. The above documents were considered by the assessing officers while passing the assessment order. In the proceedings before the High Court, there is no stay order granted. DW. 98- A Shivakumar was working as Manager-Programs and Business Promotions in J. Jay TV Company in 1994. His job was designing the television programs of J. Jay TV, fixing advertisement Tariffs and attending Bank Transactions. A2-Sasikala, A3-Sudhakaran and V. Baskaran were the partners of the said J. Jay TV Company. A sum of Rs. 38,21,000/- was pad as onetime payment for the user of the above portion of No. 31-A, Poes Garden. Ex. D.295 is the Bank Statement pertaining to J. Jay TV and others, and as per this document, the outstanding balance as on 30.04.1996 in the account of J. Jay TV was Rs. 1,06,76,010/- During the cross-examination, it is elicited that A2 and A3 are the Directors and V. Bhaskaran is the Managing Director of the said company. An amount of Rs. 38,2.1,000/ ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... by any person of his choice. That on 7.9.1996, the Director of Vigilance and Anti Corruption, Chennai, (PW. 241 -V.C. Perumal) directed PW. 259- Sri. Nallamma Naidu, Additional Superintendent of Police, DVAC, to investigate the case. PW. 241- V.C. Perumal registered FIR against A-1 on 18.9.1996 as per Ex. P.2266 in Crime No. 13/AC/96/HQ under Section 13 (2) read with Section 13 (1)(e) of Prevention of Corruption Act. PW. 259 took up further investigation, secured search warrant, conducted search of residential premises of A-1 situated at Nos. 36 and 31-A and other locations, seized voluminous documents and material objects, recorded the statements of large number of witnesses. The incriminating evidence collected during the investigation reveals the complicity of A-2 to A-4 for the alleged offences. PW. 259 made an application to the Special Judge on 22.01.1997 as per Ex. P.2316 for adding A-2 to A-4 as co-accused in the crime. PW. 259 laid charge sheet against all the accused on 4.6.1997 which came to be registered as Spl. C.C. No. 7/1997 on the file of IX Additional Sessions Judge, Chennai. Paragraph-12 of the impugned judgment relates to the charges. It is mentioned that A-1 b ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... unmarked and unexhibited documents filed under Sections 207 and 243(2) of Cr.P.C. in I.A. No. 711. This application was rejected. Against rejection of I.A. No. 711, Crl. P. No. 1840/2012 was preferred before this Court and the same came to be dismissed. Aggrieved by the same, Crl. A. No. 1497/2012 was preferred before the Hon'ble Supreme Court and the Apex Court permitted for inspection of unmarked and exhibited documents referred in I.A. 711/2012. A-3 and A-4 were also granted permission to inspect the documents. A-3, A-4 were examined under Section 313 of the Cr.P.C. and written statement was filed by A-3. A-4 has not filed any written statement. Accused moved an application under Section 91 of Cr.P.C. seeking to summon the documents and records listed in the application from the Income Tax Department and Registrar of Companies. The Hon'ble Supreme Court of India disposed of Writ Petition (Crl.) No. 166/2013 vide order dated 30.9.2013 holding that the order of removal of Sri Bhavani Singh is a product of malafides and the impugned order is not sustainable in the eye of law and quashed the same. The trial Court at paragraph 33.2 has observed that W.P. No. 14644/1997 pre ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... cted by PW. 259 during the inquiry under Section 202 of Cr.P.C. were forwarded to the Court. Therefore, the contention of the learned counsel for the accused that the documents which were collected during inquiry under Section 202 of Cr.P.C. were not made part of the final report is factually incorrect. Even accepting for the sake of argument that the material collected during the inquiry under Section 202 is relied on by PW. 241 for the purpose of registering the FIR, it cannot be considered as material irregularity much less an illegality which has the effect of nullifying the trial. The trial Court at paragraph 35.17 of the judgment has observed in the case in hand, it is proved in evidence, PW. 259 was initially authorized by PW. 240 as required under II Proviso to Section 17 of the Act as per Ex. P.2265. This authorization was in force until PW. 241 issued authorization as per Exs. P.2308 and P.2309. It was argued by the learned counsel for A-1 that authorisations-Exs. P.2308 and P.2309 were got up later. There is nothing in the evidence to indicate that Exs. P.2308 and P.2309 were fabricated by PW. 259. Accused did not recall PW. 241 to confront the above documents so as to ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ation to conduct the investigation as contended by the accused. Thus, on cumulative consideration of the testimony of PW. 240, PW. 241 and PW. 259 coupled with the documentary evidence discussed above, I do not have any hesitation to hold that PW. 259 was duly authorized to investigate the offence as per Sections 17 and 18 of the Act and the said authorizations are in accordance with the provisions of Sections 17 and 18 of the Act. The trial Court at paragraph 36.4 has observed that the accused were even examined under Section 313 of the Cr.P.C. before the transfer of the case to the State of Karnataka in 2003 and the accused did not even raise a little finger complaining any ambiguity in the charge. On the other hand after the transfer of the case, the accused themselves have examined as many as 99 witnesses and have produced voluminous documents in support of their defence which include documents relating to the properties standing in the names of the 32 firms or companies named in the charge sheet making it evident that they were posted with all necessary particulars regarding the name and constitution of the firms/companies. In the course of putting questions to the accused in ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... en conspiracy is alleged, act of one conspirator becomes the act of the other. Therefore, there is no necessity to specify the individual properties or assets held by the individual accused. The charge as framed informs the accused not only the offence for which he or she is proposed to be tried but also refers to the acquisitions made by them in the manner stated in the charge during the check period pursuant to the conspiracy in furtherance of the same transaction. Therefore the argument of the learned counsel that the charge in question is misleading and is contrary to the provisions of the code cannot be accepted. The trial Court at paragraph 36.6 of the judgment has observed that the above argument appears to have canvassed by misreading the charge and on the erroneous assumption that the prosecution case is based on the premise that the assets of non public servant are attributed to the public servant. But it is not so. The assets of the non public servant are not attributed to A-1 as contended by the learned counsel, rather the case of the prosecution is that, all the acquisitions made by the accused during the check period in their names either in their individual capacity ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... m any angle, I do find any reason to uphold the contention urged in this regard. The trial Court at paragraph 36.9 of the judgment has held that the charges framed against the accused are in accordance with the requirement of the Code and do not suffer from any vice or illegality as contended by the accused. By the said charges the accused are clearly informed about the offence for which they are tried and the necessary facts constituting the offence under Sections 109, 120-B of the Indian Penal Code read with Section 13(1)(e) read with Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act have been conveyed to them and accused have not only understood the charge but have availed full opportunity to defend them. For all these reasons the objection raised in this regard is hereby rejected. The trial Court at paragraph 37.6 of the judgment observed that merely because the properties in question are registered in the name of some Companies cannot be a ground to hold that the inclusion of the said properties as the assets of the accused is contrary to law or procedure as sought to be contended. The trial Court at paragraph 37.8 of the judgment has observed that it is trite law that juri ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... provides for effective remedy to third parties whose properties are attached in connection with prosecution of the offence under the Act. It is borne on record that all the companies named in the charge sheet have taken recourse to the provisions of Sec. 5 of the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 1944 and an adverse order has been passed against the companies holding that the properties involved in this proceedings standing in the name of the respective companies are not acquired out of the lawful resources of the companies and the consideration paid thereon do not represent the funds of the said companies. In this context it is pertinent to refer to another decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India in the case of Biswanath Bhattacharya v. Union of India, AIR 2014 S.C. 1003 wherein, it is held, "If a subject acquires property by means which are not legally approved sovereign would be perfect and justified to deprive such persons of the enjoyment of such ill-gotten wealth. There is a public interest in ensuring the persons who cannot establish that they have legitimate sources to acquire the assets held by them do not enjoy such wealth." In the light of the above factual ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... able doubt that A-2 to A-4 abetted the commission of the above offence by intentionally aiding A-1 in the acquisition and possession of pecuniary resources and properties disproportionate to her known source of income by holding substantial portion thereof in their names and in the names of 32 business enterprises floated in the names of A-2 to A-4, rendering them liable for conviction for the offence punishable u/Sec. 109 Indian Penal Code R/w. Sec. 13(2) R/w. Sec. 13(1)(e) of Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988? 4. What order? The trial Court at paragraph 42 of the judgment has dealt with the check period. The check period is from 1.7.1991 to 30.4.1997. The trial Court at paragraph 42.2 of the judgment has observed that in the instant case, the prosecution has placed before the Court the details of all the assets and properties held by the accused right from the year 1970 and has taken into account the income derived from these properties in the form of rentals, interest from deposits, agricultural income etc., in order to enable the court to have a fair view of the controversy seized by the Court. There is no argument from any quarters that the choice of the check period has ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 6 purchased from Mohd. Hanif, No. 7, Gulam Abbas Ali Khan, 1st Street,ThouslandLights,Chennai-6 in the name of M/s Sasi Enterprises C - Rs. 85,000/- S - Rs. 13,045/- F - Rs. 859/- M/s Sasi Enterprises 98,904.00 9 Undivided share of land only at Door No. 14, Khadar Navaz Khan Road, Nungambakkam in R.S. No. 58/51 to the extent of 68/12000 undivided share in 11 grounds and 736 Sq. ft. of land purchased from M/s Holiday Sports Pvt. Ltd., office at 14, Khadar Navaz Khan Road, Chennai-6 ,, 2,10,919.00 10 Land and building at Door No. 213/B, St. Mary's Road in Sy. NO. 72, New No. 212, Extent 1206 Sq.ft. Ft. purchased from K. Selvaraj, S/o Munusamy Naidu, 44, Vanniyampathy Street, Mandaveli, Chennai-28 Selvi J. Jayalalitha 3,60,509.00 11 Shop No. 18 of 189 Sq. ft. in ground floor at Door No. 602, Mount Road together with 54/42656th of undivided share of land in 17 grounds and 1856 Sq. ft. in R. S. No. 3/10 and 3/11 of Block No. 71 of Mylapore purchased from Mustafa M. Lohani, S/o Moiz K. Lohani and 2 others of 134, Angappan Naikan Sreet, 3rd Floor, Chennai-1 ,, 1,05,409.00 12 Land and building at Tanjore in Sy. No. 1091 to the extent of 2400 Sq. Ft. purchased from ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... a Bank of Mylapore branch with CA No. 1952 opened on 23.10.1989 in the name of Namadhu MGR in which Selvi J. Jayalalitha and Tmt. N. Sasikala are partners Namadhu MGR 5,51,826.94 27 Cash balance as on 1.7.1991 in Canara Bank of Mylapore branch with SB Acc. No. 23218 opened on 23.5.1990 in the name of Tmt. N. Sasikala Tmt. N. Sasikala 1,40,198.25 28 Cash balance as on 1.7.1991 in Canara Bank of Mylapore branch with CA No. 2047 opened on 26.9.1990 on transfer from Kellys branch in the name of Selvi J. Jayalalitha and Tmt. N. Sasikala M/s Jaya Publications rep. by Selvi J. Jayalalitha and Tmt. N. Sasikala 7,83,860.97 29 F.D. No. 451/1990, dt. 19.6.1990 with Canara Bank of Mylapore ,, 64,520.00 30 Cash balance as on 1.7.1991 in the Bank of Madurai, Anna Nagar branch with SB Acc. No. 5158 opened on 28.2.1990 in the name of Selvi J. Jayalalitha Selvi J. Jayalalitha 2,57,886.25 31 Cash balance as on 1.7.1991 in Canara Bank of Mylapore branch with CA No. 2018 opened on 12.10.1990 in the name of Selvi J. Jayalalitha ,, 2,40,835.02 32 Cash balance as on 1.7.1991 in Canara Bank of Mylapore branch with SB Acc. No. 23832 opened on 16.4.1991 in the name ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 993) M/s Sasi Enterprises 50,000.00 51 MIDR No. 66/9 with Central Bank of India, Secunderabad deposited on 2.5.1990 Selvi J. Jayalalitha 3,00,000.00 52 Cash balance as on 1.7.1991 in SB Acc. No. 38671 of Canara Bank, Kellys in the name of Selvi J. Jayalalitha ,, 1,80,031.22 Grand Total 2,01,83,956.53 A bare perusal of Annexure-I indicates that the prosecution has furnished the details of the properties inherited by A-1 from her deceased mother N.R. Sandhya and also the properties acquired by her prior to the check period either in her individual name or in partnership with A-2. Annexure-I also contains the list of movables and the value thereof and cash balance in her bank account as on 01.07.1991 including the value of the gold and silver articles. These particulars indicate that A-1 was possessed with substantial means even before the check period. It is also relevant to note that the value of the immovable property is determined on the basis of the actual consideration shown in the respective deeds and not on the basis of the market value of the properties as on the date of the Charge Sheet. Hence, the accused cannot have any grouse regarding the valuation o ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of the check period. I am not inclined to accept this argument for the following reasons: i) From the documents produced before the Court, it cannot be known whether the very same Final Report now marked as D.372 was produced before the Court. ii) The contents of the Final Report submitted u/Sec. 173 Cr.P.C. cannot be taken as a conclusive proof of the correctness of the facts stated therein. Ex. D.372 is only the opinion of the investigating officer. It is not legal evidence. iii) From the reading of Ex. D.373 it cannot be gathered that, the Spl. Judge has closed Cr. No. 14/AC/97/HQ based on the very same report Ex. D.372 as contended by the accused. iv) The accused have not produced any independent evidence to show that A-1 and A-2 were in possession of any other assets and pecuniary resources than those described in Annexure-I. v) According to DW. 99, Cr. No. 14/AC/97/HQ relates to the check period between 01.09.1988 and 30.01.1991. Whereas, the check period in the instant case commences from 1.7.1991. Unless it is shown that all the assets and pecuniary resources referred in Ex. D.372 were available in the same form and condition till 1.7.1991, the above plea cannot b ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... /- (Rupees Two Crores Fifteen Lakhs and Twelve) by way of gifts. Besides the above, a foreign remittance of Rs. 77,52,591/- was also received by her.5.3) A-2 Sasikala has taken up specific plea regarding the income received by her during the check period as under: 1. Loans availed from Indian bank:- Item No. Particulars Amount of loan availed Availed by 1 Loan from Indian Bank, Abirampuram 25,00,000 Sasi Enterprises 2 Loan from Indian Bank, Abirampuram 28,00,000 J. Farm House 3 Loan from Indian Bank, Abirampuram 7,00,000 J S Housing Development 4 Loan from Indian Bank, Abirampuram 5,00,000 Jay Real Estate 5 Loan from Indian Bank, Abirampuram 75,00,000 M/s. Anjaneya Printers (P) Ltd. 8 Loan from Indian Bank, Abirampuram 3,75,00,000 Kodanadu Tea Estate 9 Loan from Indian Bank, Abirampuram 1,00,00,000 M/s. J. Jay T.V. Pvt.Ltd. Interest income from Bank/Financial Institution: S.No. Particulars Amount Income of 30 InterestincomefromCentralB ankofIndia, Secunderabad 27,304.00 V.K.Sasikala 37 Interestincomefrom CanaraBankMylapore vide S.B.-23218 1,89,761.00 V.K.Sasikala 38 Interestincomefrom CanaraBankMylapore VideFDRNo.718/92,954/9 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rs Amount Income of 1 Loan from Housing and Real Estate Development Pvt. Ltd., 25,00,000.00 GreenFarm HousePartner: V.K.Sasikala- 2 Loan from Housing and Real Estate Development Pvt. Ltd., 25,00,000.00 J.Farm HousePartner: V.K.Sasikala- 3 Source from Mr. Krishnan, Chennai 17,62,738.00 J.Farm HousePartner: V.K.Sasikala- ii) Advance received from M/s. Bharani Beach Resorts Pvt. Ltd., on 17.02.1995 The learned Sessions Judge has dealt with the income from Grape Garden at paragraph-46 of the judgment. - Rs. 22 lakhs. iii) Income from M/s. Anjaneya Printers (P) Ltd. Rs. 53,49,634/- The learned Sessions Judge at paragraph 46.1 has observed that A-1 has claimed that the total agricultural income received by her from the grape garden situate in Hyderabad is Rs. 52,50,000/-. Hence, it is necessary to resolve the controversy by examining the material produced before the Court by both the parties. 46.2) In support of its case, the prosecution has examined PW. 165, 166 and 256 and has relied on Ex. X-23 and Ex. P.938. PW. 165 Tmt. K.R. Latha, is the Horticultural Officer in the office of the Asst. Director of Horticulture, Rangareddy District in Andhra Pradesh. Ac ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... in her report she has given the particulars of the vegetables and the plants observed by her. 46.4) PW. 166 P. Kondareddy, the Asst. Director of Horticulture has corroborated the testimony of PW. 165 stating that on 9.12.1996, PW. 256 visited his office with the requisition to inspect the garden belonging to A-1 situated at J.D. Metla village. After getting oral permission from his superior officers, he deputed two Horticultural Officers to make the inspection and after receiving the report from them, he also visited the said garden. He worked out the details regarding the cost of raising the crops, gross and net income for raising the grapes and submitted the report to the Director of Horticulture as per Ex. P.938. In his chief-examination, this witness specifically deposed that he is competent to assess the fixing of unit cost for raising various crops including grapes. He further stated that, as an Asst. Director of Horticulture, his duty was to supervise the work done by horticulture officers, preparation of project reports and also to prepare the assessment report for compensation to be paid to the farmers. He used to follow NABARD's norm fixed for commercial fruit crops ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ongly assailed the testimony of the above witnesses contending that the report Ex. P.938 is not worthy of acceptance. It was not enclosed with the final report. PW. 166 has admitted that he produced the said report on the date of his examination before the Court on 25.05.2000 and there is no explanation by the prosecution as to why the said report was not produced along with the Charge Sheet. That apart, PW. 166 has admitted in the cross-examination that the evaluation made by him are only approximate and probable and therefore, the report submitted by this witness even if accepted cannot be treated as the report of an expert to determine either the cost of the grape produce or the age of the plants. Likewise, the testimony of PW. 165 also cannot be given any credence as the prosecution has not produced the report purported to have been submitted by her to PW. 166. 46.8) In support of the contention urged by A-1 that the agricultural income derived by her from the grape garden is more than the amount computed by the investigating agency, the learned Counsel has placed reliance on the income tax returns submitted by A-1 for the year 1987-88 to 1992-93, and has emphatically submitt ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 9,50,000 47.1) The assessing officer finalized the assessment and accepted the returned agricultural income declared by A-1 and the assessment orders came to be passed as per Ex. P.2123 (A/y.1987-88), Ex. P.2127 (A/Y. 1988-89) Ex. P.2131 (Assessment year 1989-90), Ex. P.2135 (A/y. 1990-91) Ex. P.2139 (A/y. 1992-93). The assessment details are as under: Assessment Year Date of filing the returns /total income returned Date of assessment of order/asses sed Total Income Returned agri. Income/Asse ssed agri. Income. 1987-88 13.11.1992 Rs. 26,850 23.12.1994 Rs. 9,29,080 Rs. 4,80,000 Rs. 4,80,000 1988-89 13.11.1992 Rs. 38,910 23.11.1994 Rs. 21,29,243 Rs. 5,50,000 Rs. 5,50,000 1989-90 16.11.1992 Rs. 25,200 13.12.1995 Rs. 30,97,075 Rs. 7,00,000 Rs. 7,00,000 1990-91 20.11.1992 Rs. 86,860 2.3.1995 Rs. 1,27,59,040 Rs. 8,00,000 Rs. 8,00,000 1991-92 20.11.1992 Rs. 4,48,660 30.3.1994 Rs. 80,65,250 Rs. 9,00,000 Rs. 9,00,000 1992-93 23.11.1992 Rs. 6,64,528 21.3.1995 Rs. 2,18,37,350 Rs. 9,50,000 Rs. 9,50,000 The learned Sessions Judge at paragraph 47.9 of the judgment has observed that it is trite law that, the criminal case has to be decided on the b ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... has unequivocally stated that, he inspected the account books and took photographs of the garden which are not produced before the Court. These documents would have thrown light on the true state of facts. More importantly, the basis on which the yield is determined and their price is calculated by PW. 166 is also shrouded with suspicion. PW. 166 states that he applied NABARD method. But without there being specific evidence with regard to the quantity of the yield and the rate applicable to the produce at the relevant point of time, the report marked through PW. 166 becomes unreliable. 47.11) The evidence produced by A-1 is also equally vague and ambiguous. A-1 having sought to enhance the agricultural income is obligated to produce reliable and acceptable evidence in support of her claim. But unfortunately, the only evidence on which A-1 has sought to sustain the claim for the higher valuation of the agricultural income are the Income Tax returns which have minimal evidentiary value in determining the extent of cultivation, quantum of produce, cost of cultivation and the price fetched by A-1 during the relevant years. Undisputedly, these aspects are solely within the knowledge ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... garden is enhanced to Rs. 10 lakhs from Rs. 5,78,340/- adding the difference of Rs. 4,21,660/- to item No. 33. The learned Sessions Judge at paragraph 48 of the judgment deals with Gifts. On 44th Birthday of A-1, out of reverence and expression of love and loyalty, the party workers presented her with gifts by way of cash and drafts amounting to Rs. 2,15,00,012/- and foreign remittance of Rs. 77,52,059/-. The learned Sessions Judge at paragraph 48.11 of the judgment has observed that in paragraph 49 of chief-examination of DW. 64, he has stated thus: "The Central Bureau of Investigation initiated criminal proceedings against A-1 Jayalalitha regarding the above gift items. The action of the C.B.I. in initiating those proceedings against A-1 Jayalalitha was challenged by A-1 Jayalalitha before Madras High Court in a Crl. Petition filed used 482 of Cr.P.C. The said Crl. Proceedings came to be quashed in entirety by the Madras High Court." In the cross-examination of DW. 64, it is elicited that the Income Tax returns for the assessment year 1991-92 to 1995-96 of A-1 were filed by her previous tax consultant viz., R. Rajsekhar, PW. 228. The said Rajsekhar had also filed wealth tax ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nt, every receipt would not partake the character of income. A receipt from windfall, or gains of graft, crime or immoral secretions by persons prima facie would not be receipt from the "known source of income" of a public servant. 48.16) Though the receipt of birthday presents by themselves may not amount to windfall or immoral secretions, but in the facts of the present case, when A-1 claims to have received huge sum of Rs. 2 crores and foreign remittance as presents and gifts after she assumed the office of the Chief Minister creates serious doubts and suspicion about the character of the funds received by her. Naturally, a question arises in the mind, if her persona attracted such huge presents from her party loyalists why was the practice discontinued after 1992? Would she have received similar admiration in cash and kind from her party workers if she was out of office? It is not her case that it was her professional income. All these questions militate against the claim put forward by A-1. No doubt it is true large number of her party workers have turned up to depose in her favour and have identified some D.Ds produced before the court, but even if their evidence is accepte ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tment against the acceptance of the scheme deposit has been rejected by the Tribunal. Under this head, A-2 has sought to include Rs. 14.01,000.00 (Rupees Fourteen Crores One Lakh only) as the income of A-1 and A-2. -Rs. 14,01,000.00 vi) Income earned by Jaya Publications from the job works of printing & publication Rs. 1,15,94,849.00 vii) Foreign Inward Remittance received by A-2 in 1992 Rs. 51,47,955.00 viii) Business income from Metal King Rs. 38,76,287.00 ix) Business income from Vinod Video Vision Rs. 94,36,682.00 x) Advance from Meadow Agro Farms (Pvt) Ltd., Rs. 32,09,000.00 xi) Advance from River way Agro Products (Put) Ltd. Rs. 52,00,000.00 A-3 V.N. Sudhakaran has contended that, during the investigation, the investigating officer had seized hundred receipt books (Ex. P.2341 series) maintained by Super Duper T.V. Pvt. Ltd., containing hundred receipts each acknowledging the receipt of Rs. 5,000/- per person. During investigation, he brought to the notice of the I.O. about the income of the Super Duper Pvt. Ltd., in spite of such sufficient proof, the I.O. has deliberately failed to take into consideration the income of Super Duper T.V. Pvt. Ltd., totali ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... documents of M/s. Jaya Publication by D.V. & A.C., those documents could not be made available before the special auditors. He has also admitted that, in Ex. D.217, there is an observation that, all payments made through cash are not supported by any outside document or evidence and that they are only supported by internally made vouchers with payee's signature. Further, it is elicited from DW. 88, the returns as per Ex. D.218 to D.220 are all filed on 06.11.1998 whereas, the returns as per Ex. D.221 and D.222 were filed on 17.03.1998 respectively. The returns as per Ex. D.218 to D.222 were all prepared by DW. 88. He has also admitted that, Ex. D.224 to D.226 do not bear the date, seal and signature of the Income Tax Department. Ex. D.228 the list of subscribers does not bear the seal and signature of M/s. Jaya Publication. It does not indicate the date on which the said list was prepared. The original subscription applications contained in Ex. D.230(1) to Ex. D.230(17) volumes were not produced before the Income Tax Authorities, but their xerox copies were produced. This witness has explained in the cross-examination that the originals were not produced for the reason that the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nts of M/s. Jaya Publication, the evidence of PW. 201 C.K.R.K. Vidyasagar, an officer of Canara Bank, Mylapore Branch is relevant to be considered. In his examination-in-chief from page 59 onwards, this witness has deposed that, the Current A/c. No. 2047 of Jaya Publication was transferred from Kellys Branch, Chennai to their Canara Bank at Mylapore Branch on 26.09.1990. In the application the address of the organization was mentioned as No. 36, Poes Garden, Chennai-86. The copy of the application sent to their bank from Kellys Branch viz., Ex. P.1900 discloses that the account opening application was signed by A-1 and A-2 and one Dinakara and Tivakaran, the partners. While transferring the account, the bank obtained a fresh letter from the partners which is signed by A-1 and A-2 as per Ex. P.1901. The statement of the bank account ledger of Jaya Publication is marked through this witness as Ex. P.1903. This statement pertains to the period from 01.07.1991 to 11.09.1996. As per this statement, as on 1.7.1991, the balance in his Current A/c. was Rs. 7,83,860.97 and the balance as on 30.04.1996 was Rs. 20,79,885.12. This witness has deposed in detail about the remittance made to this ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... PW. 201 has stated in his evidence that A-2 N. Sasikala started a new A/c. No. 2277 as Proprietor of a Company by name Metal King Company. In this account, amount was remitted by cash on different dates. Apart from the said remittance in cash, different amounts were transferred to this account on different dates. The details of which are stated in page 79 of his examination-in-chief. It is important to note that large sum of money is seen to have been transferred from the Current A/c. No. 1952 of Namadhu MGR to the account of Metal King Company on different dates falsifying the contention of the accused that the deposits collected from the subscribers of Namadhu MGR was utilized for purchase of immovable properties. These transactions on the other hand fortify the case of the prosecution that the unaccounted and undisclosed funds credited into the accounts of Namadhu MGR were diverted to the accounts of Jaya Publications, Sasi Enterprises, Vinod Video, Metal King and various other firms and companies, wherein, A-2 to A-4 were either the Directors or the Partners at the relevant point of time. 50.13) The transaction spoken by PW. 201 are inconsistent with the case pleaded by A-1 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... osit scheme inviting subscription from the general public. As a matter of fact, even a copy of the said Namadhu MGR of the relevant period is not produced before the Court which would have helped the Court in ascertaining whether the said News Paper is merely an official news letter of AIADMK Party or is meant for general consumption and is sold for Re. 1/- as contended by the accused. It is a cardinal rule of evidence that, best evidence in the possession of the party should be produced before the Court. In the instant case, DW. 88 has admitted that Namadhu MGR News Paper is registered with the Registrar of Press Trust of India and it has circulation crossing more than 70,000/-. If so, the certificate of registration and the Register of the subscribers would have been the best piece of evidence to support the claim of the accused. 50.16) In appreciating the claim/defence of the accused, it is pertinent to note that M/s. Jaya Publication was an assessee of Income Tax with Central Circle (II) 2, Chennai from the year 1991. According to DW. 88, earlier to that the said firm was an Income Tax assessee with different circle of Income Tax. It is admitted by DW. 88 that the Income Tax ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... context, it may be relevant to note that, during the pendency of the proceedings before this Court, A-2 filed an application u/Sec. 207 and 243(2) Cr.P.C. R/w. Rule 2 Chapter XIV of Karnataka Criminal Rules of Practice seeking certified copies of the documents viz., the Day Book, Attendance Register, Journal Register, Daily Collections, Advertisement Registers, in and Out Register, Postal Fee Paid and Statement of accounts file relating to account of Namadhu MGR which were stated to have been seized and also the Bank documents which were stated to have been seized under search list No. 129126 to 425868, knowing fully well that those documents were not in existence at all. In the said petition, it is unequivocally stated that the documents seized during the course of investigation have not been marked by the prosecution, apparently as they would not support the case of the accused. Similarly, A-1 had also filed I.A. No. 722 u/Sec. 207 of Cr.P.C. seeking leave to peruse the records forwarded by the prosecution which were unmarked during the course of leading evidence by the prosecution. In the said application, it is specifically stated that the documents lying in the Court were forw ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... me to be produced before the Court under mysterious circumstances, the testimony of the witnesses based on these applications is susceptible to doubt. Even otherwise, a bare perusal of these applications indicate that, these applications have been created just before the examination of the witnesses somewhere in 2012 and maneuvered to be produced before the Court. Even the naked eye of a common ordinary man could find out that the entire bulk of applications produced before this Court are nothing but sheets of paper kept in sunlight or exposed to smoke so as to give them an appearance of old used papers, but the ink used on the said sheets for writing the names and other details appears to be so fresh and recent belying the very claim of the accused that the said applications were obtained during the check period. For ex. at page No. 15482 and 15484 of the records, the papers are not evenly turned brown and in one of the sheets, the ink is smudged on the rear side of the paper making it evident that, the writing therein is made recently after using the above trick. Likewise, at page 15312 and 15314 the portion of the signature extending on the white patches of the paper looks fresh ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rty workers, easily procurable witnesses who are vitally interested in the outcome of the trial and therefore, their evidence is bound to be interested and partisan. Even otherwise, the circumstances discussed above give a clear indication that these witnesses are tutored and interested witnesses. There is absolutely no corroboration to the oral testimony of these witnesses. Therefore, on over all consideration of all the above facts and circumstances and in view of my definite finding that the application forms relied on by the accused at Ex. D.230 series are got up and fabricated to bolster up the false claim laid by the accused, I am not inclined to accept the claim set up by the accused in this regard. The learned Sessions Judge at paragraph 51 of the judgment has dealt with the Agricultural Income of Jaya Publications. It was claimed that A-1 and A-2 as Partners of Jaya Publications derived agricultural income totaling to Rs. 60,45,665/- as per the break up figure given in the chart and therefore, the said amount is required to be taken into account while computing the resources available with A-1 for acquisition of properties and the pecuniary resources. The learned Session ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... uced bear the imprint of the signature of G. Natarajan, the Chartered Accountant who is not examined before the Court. Therefore, no reliance could be placed on the Profit and Loss Account statement. The trial Court at paragraph 53 of the judgment has discussed about the rental income of the accused. The learned trial Judge has rejected the claim of A-1 and A-2 at Rs. 45,30,642/- from rental income from the properties and accepted the rental income calculated by the prosecuting agency. Besides, the claim of accused in a sum of Rs. 6 lakhs towards rental income from the hire of machinery was also negatived as the statement of Profit and Loss Account for the year ended 31.03.1995 and 1996 marked at Exs. D.226 and D.225 was proved to be got up and fabricated document. The learned Sessions Judge at paragraph 55 deals with Sasi Enterprises. It is not in dispute that A-1 and A-2 are the partners of Sasi Enterprises, a Partnership Firm which owns (i) Shop No. 14, Ground Floor at No. 602, Anna Salai, Chennai, (ii) Door No. 14, Khadar Nawaz Khan Road, Nungambukkam, (item Nos. 8, 9 of Annexure-I), (iii) Vacant site at Blake H.D. Road, Tanjaore, (iv) Vacant site in Ward No. 6 in Mahar Nomb ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... was acquired or income therein was earned. In the instant case, the resources available with the above companies and their capacity to advance loans will be discussed later. For the present, suffice it to note that the accused have not produced any acceptable evidence in proof of the availment of the loan from the above Companies. As a result, this claim is also liable to be rejected. The learned Sessions Judge at paragraph 62 of the judgment has dealt with Super Duper TV and income of A3. The Investigating Agency has omitted to include income earned by A-3 to the tune of Rs. 1.10 crore, initially, carried on as Proprietor of Super Duper TV and later incorporated as Super Duper TV Private Limited. The Company had introduced a deposit scheme, wherein cable operators deposited Rs. 5,000/- or multiples and in this process, the Company received scheme deposit money of Rs. 1,06,10,000/-. The receipts were disclosed to the Income Tax Authorities and the Commissioner of Appeals has accepted the same as valid and proper. The Company has also received periodical lease rent of Rs. 1,500/- per month for other equipments which were given on hire from time to time. Thus, an amount of Rs. 11, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... during the previous year i.e., 1994-95, the assessee admitted the cable scheme receipts to the tune of Rs. 62,15,100/- but during the enquiry, summons were not served to 38 subscribers and 13 persons who were summoned by the assessing officer having denied the payment of the amounts to the Company, it is observed that a sum of Rs. 3,85,000/- was treated as unexplained cash credits. Thus, from the material produced before the Court, A-3 has shown that from 1994-96, from the business of Super Duper T.V., A-.3 had collected Rs. 47,80,000 + Rs. 62,15,100 = Rs. 1,09,95,100 - Rs. 3,87,000 : Rs. 1,06,10,100.00. 62.11) There is nothing on record to show that A-3 had any other income other than the scheme deposits amounting to Rs. 1,06,10,100.00. And the hire charges which are declared by him before the Income Tax Authorities amounting to Rs. 11,18,500/-. Though the returns are filed by A-3 much after the initiation of the criminal proceedings, yet, as already noted above, DW. 85 in the cross-examination has unequivocally stated that Super Duper T.V. Pvt. Ltd., carried on the cable TV business only for six months and thereafter the said business was stopped. Even otherwise, Sec. 3 of the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... able to show from the books of the firm that M/s. Jaya Publications had shown in its returns the advance of Rs. 35 lakhs to M/s. Anjaneya Printers Pvt. Ltd., on different dates. There is not even a scrap of paper to prove either the borrowal of the funds or the income earned from the business by the firm as contended by A-3. The transaction put forward by A-3 is opposed to Sec. 269(SS) of I.T. Act. There is also no evidence to show that the firm had turned out printing works during the relevant year. There is no proof regarding the initial capital invested by the partners. Except the computerized statement of accounts, there is nothing on record to show that orders were received and printing work was turned out by the firm as contended. The computerized statement of account is neither admissible in law nor does it prove the alleged income of the firm. As a result, even the claim set up by the accused in this regard is also liable to be dismissed. The learned Sessions Judge from paragraph 65 to paragraphs 72 of the judgment deals with expenditure incurred during the check period. 72.47) Now coming to the expenses incurred by A-1 for the marriage arrangement is concerned, it is p ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s. 8,49,06,833.00 73. RE: ASSETS: The nature and extent of the assets and pecuniary resources found in possession of the accused during the check period are detailed in Annexure-II. It is marked as Ex. P.2338. It contains a list of 306 items. Learned Spl. P.P. has sought to delete item Nos. 1 to 17 of Annexure-II on the ground that these were acquired by the accused prior to the check period. For convenient discussion of the issues involved in the case, these assets are categorized under the following heads. Nature of assets Item Nos. Value (in Rs.) I Immovableproperties(considerationcost ofregistration) 1 to 173, 175, 292,297, 301, 302(i),305(Excluding item Nos.24, 31, 33, 64,66,127, 145,150,159) 22,83,99,174.70 II Cash paid over & abovesale consideration 24, 31, 33, 64, 66,127, 145, 150, 159 2,53,80,619.00 III New or additional construction of buildings 174, 176-192, 301, 302(ii) 28,17,40,430,00 IV Gold and DiamondJewellery 284-290, 295 5,53,02,334.75 V Silver wares 291 3,42,62,728.00 VI F.Ds and shares 258-277, 298, 303,306 3,42,62,728.00 VII Cash balance in bank accounts 193-229, 296, 300, 304 97,47,751.30 VIII Vehicles 230- ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... invillageDoor No.18,EastAbiramapuram, IIIStreet. (5529.31 Sq. ft.) Bldg., consisting of basement, Ground, Mezzanine and 1st floor M/s Sasi Enterprises rep. By N.Sasikala 22.1.1993, Doc. No. 72/1993, Dt. 27.1.93, Ex.P-23 (Original) 49,02,105 PW.4 PW159 (Sub-Reg) 27 Sy. No. 366/4 & 366/1 situate in Cheyyur village measuring 4.90 acres M/s Signora Business Enterprises Pvt.Ltd. 24.5.1993, Doc.No. 450/93, Ex. P-36 1,39,562 PW.9 (Sub-Reg) 28 Agrl. land at Sy. No. 365/3 situate in Cheyyur village measuring 3.30 acres M/s Signora Business Enterprises Pvt.Ltd. 26.6.1993, Doc.No. 593/93, Ex. P-37 1,00,830 PW.13, PW.9 (Sub-Reg) 29 Agrl. land at Sy. No. 365/1 situate in Cheyyur village measuring 1.65 Acres M/s. Signora Business Enterprises Pvt.Ltd. 24.6.1993, Doc.No. 594/93, Ex. P-38 50,495 PW.11, PW.9 30 Agrl. land at Sy. No. 365/2 situate in Cheyyur village measuring 2.22 acres M/s. SignoraBusiness Enterprises Pvt.Ltd. 25.6.1993, Doc.No. 595/93, Ex. P-39 66,485 PW.12, PW.9 32 72/12000 share of 11 grounds 1736 Sq. Ft. in R.S.No.58/5 @ 14, Gems Court, Kather Navaz Khan Road, Sasi Enterprises Ex.P.768 Doc.No.641/93, dt.28.7.93 1,60,572 PW.136, 137 34 Dry lan ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 28.10.93, Doc. No. 1587/93, Ex. P-82 3,498 PW. 31 49 Agrl. Land No.63 in Cheyyur (B' Block) village at Sy. No.364/12 measuring0.63 acres M/s. Signora Business Enterprises Pvt.Ltd. 6.12.1993, Doc. No. 1591/93, Ex. P-34 31,340 PW. 9 (Sub-Reg) PW. 11 50 Land and building to the extent 4802 Sq.together with building (with ground and first floor) in S.No.94, plot No.7 Neelankarai Village J. Elavarasi Doc. No. 4806/93, dt.31.12.93, Ex. P-134 9,60,520 PW. 50 51 1/5th un-divided share in landed Bldg. at No. Padma-nabha Chetty Street, Ngr 1 Ground & 1086 Sq.ft. Anjineya Printers Pvt.Ltd.,(rep Byits Chairman V.N.Sudhagaran 13.1.1994 Doc. No. 51/1994, Dt. 17.1.94, Ex. P-24 3,19,230 PW.5, PW159 52 1/5th un-divided share in landed Bldg (1 ground 1086 Sq.ft. ft. with bldg., at Door No.21 Padmanabha Cheetty Street, T. Nagar Anjineya Printers Pvt.Ltd.,rep.by V.N.Sudhakaran 13.1.1994 Doc. No. 52/1994, Dt. 17.1.94, Ex. P-25 3,19,230 PW.5, PW159 53 1/5th un-divided share in landed Bldg (1 ground & 1086 Sq. ft. ft. with bldg., at Door No.21 Padmanabha Cheetty Street, T. Nagar Anjineya Printers Pvt.Ltd.,rep.by V.N.Sudhakaran 13.1.1994, Doc. No. 52/1994 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... first floor in S. No.3705 part of Sriram Nagar, TTK Road, Chennai-18 M/s. Lex Property Development (P) Ltd. Doc. no. 125/94, dt. 24.2.94, Ex.P.3 57,00,040 PW. 2 68 1.29 acres in S.No.18/4A 1 of Enjambakkam Village M/s. J Farm House Doc. No. 1017/94, Dt. 25.2.94, Ex.P.23 6,49,770.00 PW. 25, 69 16.75 cents in S.No.1/1F and old RS No.1/1C4 of Sholinganallore Village Tr.V. N. Sudhakaran Doc.No.189/book IV/1994, dt.9.3.94, Ex.P.30, Ex.P.43, Ex.C.1, Ex.C.2 125.00 PW. 16 70 Actualconsideration Paid to Rs. 2,35,200/- and by cash Rs. 3,35,000/-on 8.3.94forpurchase of 6.75cents Ex. P. 43 5,70,200.00 PW. 16 71 Actualconsideration of Rs. 2,35,200/- and by cash Rs. 3,35,000/-on 8.3.94 for purchase of 16.50 cents Doc.No.190/Book IV/1994 dt.9.3.94, Ex.P.31, Ex.P.34 125.00 PW. 7, PW. 51 72 Actualconsiderationby DD Rs. 530400 and by cashof Rs. 335000. Ex.P.44 8,65,400.00 PW.16, 73 16.75 cents in R.S.No.1/1Fold R.S.No.1/1C4at Sholinganallore village Ex. P. 32, 45 125.00 PW. 7, PW. 51 74 Actualconsideration by DD 2,35,200 and cash of Rs. 3,35,000 Ex.P.74 5,70,200.00 PW.45 75 6 grounds 1087 sq. ft. in 581 sq.ft. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... t5 grounds) ofsolinganallur village in S.No.1/1C5 whichis now known as No.1, MurphyStreet,Akkarai Village J.S.Hou sing Development Doc. No.3348/94, dt.10.08.94, Ex.P.74 9,95,670.00 PW. 26, PW. 50 86 53 acres 66 centsin S.No.436/6,467/3, 468/2,472/5,401/8, 462/8,472/5,401/8, 462/8,467/2,484/1A, 484/1C,489/1,462/3, 466/4,462/7,468/2, 490/1,467/1, 464/7 in CherakulamVillage, S.Nos.188/3,221/1 in Vallakulam village Riverwa Agro Products (Pvt) Ltd. Doc. No.429/94, dt.22.08.94, Ex.P.324 1,21,389.00 PW.76, PW.159 87 3 acres 51 cents in S.No.43/2 Karunkuzhipallam Village J. Vivek Doc. No.478/94, Dt.15.9.94, Ex.P.75 1,58,310.00 PW27, PW159 88 4 acres 52 cents in S.No.46 in Karunkuzhipallam Village J. Vivek Doc. No.479/94, Dt.15.9.94, Ex.P.76 2,03,510 PW27, PW159 89 4 acres 15 centsin S.No.45 in Karunkuzhipall am village J. Vivek Doc. No.480/94, Dt.15.9.94, Ex.P.77 1,86,356 PW28, PW159 90 4 acres 15 cents in Karunkuzhipallam village J. Vivek Doc. No.481/94, Dt.15.9.94, Ex.P.78 1,86,356 PW28, PW159 91 4380 Sq. Ft. landwith 520 Sq. Ft.house in S.No.588/2A, 2B,in Thiruvenkada Nagar Colony M/s. Sasikala Enterprise Doc. No.509/94, Dt. 26.9.94, Ex.P.46 2,65,0 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... akulam village Riverway Agro Products (Pvt.)Ltd. Doc. No.649/94, Dt. 17.11.94, Ex.P.330 1,67,126.00 PW.76, 106 69.78 acres in 406/2, 485/2,460/8, 598/1, 460/6,467/3,487/1, 455/9,485/9, 487/1, 467/3,367/3,66/6, 466/6,469/2,469/2, 463/1,406/16, 463/1, 406/16,463/5B,469/2, 464/4,405/16, 460/4, 274/1B, 462/9,462/9, 464/5,467/2, 598/1, 398/7, 467/3,474/5, 487/3C,464/3, 469/9, 262/2, 468/2, 490/1 in Cherrakulam village Riverway Agro Products (Pvt.) Ltd. Doc. No.695/94, Dt. 17.11.94, Ex.P.339 1,37,204.00 PW.76, PW.159 107 Extent 60 acres 65-1/2 Cents in 486,495/4, 453/2,422/2,459/2, 602/2C,602/2A3A,603/1 ,602/2C,604/2B, ,602/2C,604/2B, 495/2,462/4,912,259/2 ,472/9,471, 496/1,491/1,496/3, 491/2,4,5, 10, 495/2, 491,492/2 in Cherkulam village Riverway Agro Products (Pvt.) Ltd. Doc. No.696/94, Dt. 17.11.94, Ex.P.345 1,37,204.00 PW.76, PW.159 108 42 acres 31 cents in S.No.823/9,817/10,822/ 5,823/3,817/2C, 35, 36, 159, 37/3,2, 149/2,149/3,37/2,130/2 ,3,110/2,817/5,9,373/4, 382/3, 374/1, 378/4, 1072/10, 11, 817/2, 2, 1073/1, 1075/7, 822/2, 543/11, 543 in Meerkulam in village Riverway Agro Products (Pvt.) Ltd. Doc. No.697/94, Dt. 17.11.94, Ex.P.350 95,740 PW.76, PW.159 109 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... /2A and other Nos. in Meerankulam village Riverway Agro Products (Pvt) Ltd. Doc. No.818/94, Dt. 22.12.94, Ex.P.431 1,76,609.00 PW.76, PW.159 122 4293 Sq. Ft.together with abuilding (2000 Sq. Ft. GroundFloor, 2600 Sq.Ft. First Floor) in S. No.6794 which is called No.68, Habibullah Road, T. Nagar, Madras-17 M/s. Anjaneya Printers (P) Ltd. Doc. No.874/94, Dt. 30.12.94, Ex.P.513 43,56,142 PW.86, PW.159 123 3472 Sq.Ft.together with building 3000 sq.ft. ground floor 3700 sq.ft.first Floor in Survey No.6794 which iscalled 69, Habibullah Road,T. Nagar. M/s. Anjaneya Printers (P) Ltd. Doc. No.875/94, Dt. 30.12.94, Ex.P.515 59,96,346 PW.86, PW.159 124 48.95 acres in S.No.252,264/24,250, 255/1,494/3,495/3,49 9/3,504/2,505/1, 50/1,543/2,599/3, 1/3,602,603/3,605/3, 251/297/1,250/1,401,468,258/1,68/3,461/1,54,25,254,255 in Cherakulam Village Riverway Agro Products (Pvt) Ltd. Doc. No.9/95, Dt. 6.1.95, Ex.P.443 1,10,738 PW.159, PW.76, PW.159 125 54.98 acres in S.No.62,68/2,59/2, 69/3,78/2,75/1, 78/7, 212/3,484/1,484,492, 67/3, 206/6, 85/2,59, 491 in Vallakulam Village Riverway Agro Products (Pvt) Ltd. Doc. No.10/95, Dt. 6.1.95, Ex.P.450 1,24,370 PW.76, PW.159 126 62.6 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 62/10, 464/3,465/5,462/8, 401/9,464/2,262, 257,401/4,407/2,9/3A,of Cherrakulam village Riverway Agro Products (Pvt) Ltd. Doc. No.175/95, Dt. 21.2.95, Ex.P.467 37,693 PW.76, PW.159 139 30.75 acres in S.No.199/4,218/1B, 221/8,36/1,182/1, 205/2A,220/1,204/5, 6,215/1,13,224/17, 210/3,194/7,198/3, 199/5,97/10, in Vallakulam village Riverway Agro Products (Pvt) Ltd. Doc. No.176/95, Dt. 21.2.95, Ex.P.472 76,745.00 PW.76, PW.159 140 51.40 acres S.No.385/3 288/4, 543/8B, 536/4A, 416/8B, 832/3, 825/1, 827/7A, 313/3B, 817/8, 831/6, 543/8, 849/2, 848, 830/4B, 829/3A, 825/8, 827/11, 418/6, 310/11, 822/3, 536/1, 530/5, 149/5, 543/13B, 543/10, 543/11, 413/2, 817/5, 813/2B, 535/4, 17, 5/2 823/8, 538/3 in Meerankulam village Riverway Agro Products (Pvt) Ltd. Doc. No.117/95, Dt. 21.2.95, Ex.P.477 1,17,016 PW.76, PW.159 141 59.82 acres in S.No.535/20,13,14, 10,828/6,829/7,814/4,81 6/5B,4C, 414/2B,413/4,416/3, 418/3,367/3,8,388/1, 1072,1072/5,6, 1072/12,367/4, 1072/8,171/10,81072/8,171/10,820/2,3 70/6,335/4A,158,61/1,1 37/8,346/2, 358/3, 7/8,374/12,132/1A, 132/1C,112/4C, 4B, 132/1B, 112/4A,11/6B, 341/1, 350/7, 341/3, 345/3, 346/1, 1066/12, 543/15, 347/3, 54/2A2,416 Riverway Agro Pro ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ivided share of land in five grounds and 1133 sq. ft. in S.No.3334/1A of Luz Avenue J.S.Housing Development Doc. No.250/95, Dt. 21.3.95, Ex.P.108 10,87,196 PW. 43, PW.159 157 1/6th undivided share of land in 5 grounds and 1133 Sq. Ft. in S.No.3334/1A of Luz Avenue M/s.Anjaneya Printers(P)Ltd. Doc. No.251/95, Dt. 21.3.95, Ex.P.109 10,87,196 PW. 43, PW.159 158 1/6th undivided share of land in 5 grounds and 1133 Sq. Ft. in S.No.3334/1A of Luz Avenue Jaya Contractors and Builders Doc. No.252/95, Dt. 21.3.95, Ex.P.110 10,87,196 PW. 43, PW.159 160 11 cents land and building in S.No.74/1 in Neelankarai Village M/s. Lex Property Development (P)Ltd. Doc. No.293/95, Dt. 4.4.95, Ex.P.135 7,98,945 PW. 51, PW.159 161 11 cents land and building in S.No.74/1 in Neelankarai Village M/s. Lex Property Development (P)Ltd. Doc. No.294/95, Dt. 4.4.95, Ex.P.136 9,49,995 PW. 51, PW.159 162 3197 sq. ft. in T.S.No.115/pt,117/pt, 127/7 pt in Arumbakkam village Mahasubha Lakshmi Kalyana Mandabam Doc. No.295/95, Dt. 4.4.95, Ex.P.69 8,55,150 PW. 22, PW.159 163 Land and building to the extent of 26540 sq.ft. with a superstructure in T.No.No.3077 to 3079 which is known as No.3 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... , which reads as under; "When I was the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu between 1991 and 1996, I acquired only one immovable property, a vacant site bearing Door No. 31-A Poes Garden, Chennai. I renovated my old house at Door No. 36, Poes Garden, Chennai, made a new construction at 31-A, Poes Garden, Chennai and also a Farm house in Hyderabad. The expenditures have been duly accounted for, disclosed to the Income-tax Department and accepted by them after in-depth scrutiny and verification of facts." i) The other accused have taken up a plea that they were having independent source of income and assets. They were individually assessed under the Income-tax Act, and the various properties standing in their names were acquired out of their earnings or the business income of the firms floated by them and therefore, the prosecution is not justified in clubbing their assets with the properties of A-1. ii) In para 20 of the written statement submitted by A-2 under Sec. 243 (1) Cr.P.C., she has stated as under; "At all times, I had independent income and Selvi Jayalalitha had her own independent income and assets in her name. All the four of us were having independent source of income ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... and cable TV net work. He was also carrying on the business in consultation, investment, programming, trading and vehicle hiring and was also selling mushrooms purchased from M/s. Fresh Mushrooms and had earned Rs. 56 lakh from the coverage of film clippings, which were telecasted in DD and other TV channels during the World Tamil Conference. vii) A-3 has taken up a further defence that he along with A-2 became a share holder of the company i.e., Anjeneya Printers and this Anjeneya Printers acquired the following properties viz: - 1. Padmanabha Street Rs. 15,96,150.00 2. Habibullah Road Rs. 1,03,52,488.00 3. Luz Avenue 1/6th share Rs. 10,87,196.00 According to A-3, the premises where the machinery was found, was not exclusively in the occupation of M/s. Anjeneya Printers Pvt. Ltd., but it was also in the occupation of M/s. Jaya Publications. Regarding the valuation of machinery, A-3, in his written statement, has put forth a plea that large items of machinery were purchased from Mr. Shroff, which were under his use. The said machinery was valued at Rs. 20,16,000/-. Besides the above, certain other machinery were taken from M/s. Jaya Publications on lease. The e ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the amount in cash. Her daughter Bama Chandran and Ramesh have signed the sale deed as witnesses. She further deposed that the amount given as cash is not shown in the sale deed. In the cross-examination she denied the suggestion that she had entered into an agreement with Ramesh for Rs. 1,90,000/-. She asserted in the cross-examination that the said agreement was for Rs. 5 lakhs. She also denied the suggestion that at the instance of the police she has falsely stated that she had taken Rs. 5 lakhs in connection with the said dealing. 76.7) It is the submission of the learned Counsel for A-2 that the so called agreement entered into with Ramesh is not produced in evidence and more over her testimony being contrary to Sec. 92 of the Evidence Act, no reliance can be placed on her testimony. The learned Counsel also pointed out that, Ramesh, the attester to Ex. P.46 is examined as PW. 161 but in his evidence he has not spoken anything about the execution of the agreement for Rs. 5 lakhs with PW. 17. Therefore, the claim made by the prosecution in this regard is not supported by oral or documentary evidence. 76.8) I have gone through the evidence of PW. 161 Sri. R. Ramesh, the Ass ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tially corroborated the testimony of PW. 17 with regard to the prior agreement of sale entered into between PW. 17 and PW. 161. Both these witnesses have stated that, at the time of execution of the sale deed Rs. 1,75,000/- was paid as advance consideration and the said amount was refunded to PW. 161 at the time of execution of the sale deed Ex. P.46. It is borne on record that the sale consideration in Ex. P.46 is shown as Rs. 1,90,000 and it is also not in dispute that the said consideration of Rs. 1,90,000/- was paid to PW. 17 through D.D. Under the said circumstances, if in fact the said consideration was the total consideration received by PW. 17 in respect of sale transaction, naturally a question would arise as to how PW. 17 would have repaid the advance received by her in respect of very same transaction. It is not the case of either of the parties that PW. 161 was repaid Rs. 1,75,000/- after encashment of the D.D. In all probability, PW. 161 would not have signed the sale deed as witnesses if the advance consideration paid by him was not refunded to him before the registration of sale deed. Therefore, the testimony of PW. 161 appears to be nearer to the truth. In this cont ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... per Ex. P.733 and two certificates issued by the Tahsildar. As per Ex. P.732 the yearly income of A-4 was Rs. 48,000/-. The total value of the plot is Rs. 2,34,813/- The amount was paid as per Ex. P.735. The possession was delivered on 23.10.1992 as per Ex. P.736. On 25.02.1993 no objection certificate was granted to her to construct a residential house in the said plot. In the cross-examination it is suggested to PW. 128 that the site allotted to A-3 is still with the Housing Board and the money paid by A-3 should be returned. PW. 128 denied the said suggestion. The allotment and the payment made by A-3 and A-4 in respect of the above allotment and the declarations given by them regarding their address and income status has not been disputed in the cross-examination. Hence the accused are not entitled for return of the amount. It is the argument of the learned Counsel for A-2 that the evidence of PW. 45 is hearsay evidence and therefore no credence could be given to his evidence. Tmt. Sucharita is not examined by the prosecution. No document is produced regarding the deposit of cash to the Bank account of Nageswara Rao on that day as spoken by the witnesses and therefore, the pr ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... that a sum of Rs. 76 lakhs was paid by the accused towards the cost of acquisition of Luz Avenue property. In this context, it is also relevant to note that the names of the purchaser were not entered in Ex. P.105 to P.110 at the time of registration of these documents. Though the entire transactions appear to be shoddy and suspicious and it is really shocking to note as to how the Registrar could register the document leaving the name of the purchaser blank. The endorsements made by the Registrar on this document indicate that the purchaser was not present at the time of registration of the document. PW. 43 has not stated as to who paid the sale consideration and the cash amount of Rs. 58.73 lakhs to him. He has merely stated that, Ramayi Ammal signed the sale deed. Shankar and he put the witness signature. Six blank cheques worth Rs. 44 lakhs were given to the bank itself. One cheque for Rs. 10 lakhs was given to Ramayi Ammal and an amount of Rs. 58.73 lakhs cash was credited to his account. On the basis of the vague and general statement made by PW. 43, without there being any corroboration thereto, solely on the basis of his oral testimony, the cost of Rs. 76 lakhs cannot be mu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 959.00 190 New/ Additional Construction in Building at S.No.32/2-4, Plot Nos.S-7, Ganapathy Colony, Tr. Vi-Ka Indl. Estate, Guindy, Chennai-32. 39,34,000.00 191 New/ Additional Construction in Buildings and the change of roof for the works shed at MF-9, Guindy Industrial Estate, Chennai-32. 14,17,538.00 301 Cost of renovation and additional construction between June 1992 and 1993, of the building at Plot No.102, ITI Cross, Road, Pon Nagar, Trichy, owned by Tmt. N. Sasikala (covered by Document No.2256/90 dt. 3-5-90 of S.R.O.T. O.R.B., Trichy) 39,34,000.00 78.33) In the instant case, there cannot be any dispute that, the Engineers examined by the prosecution are competent to estimate the valuation of the structures. The accused themselves have relied on the valuation report prepared by the PW.D. Engineers, who were part of the team to controvert the reports prepared by the prosecution witnesses. It is not explained by the prosecution as to why the reports prepared by DW. 78 and DW. 83 are preferable to the reports prepared by the entire team which are proved in a Court of law. Undisputedly, the actual cost incurred for the constructions is within the knowledge of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... th the description of the marbles noted in the respective valuation reports. Therefore, I do not find any justifiable reasons to accept the arguments of the learned counsel for the accused regarding the valuation adopted by the prosecution. However, as the prosecution has not produced convincing evidence in support of the value fixed by the PW. D Engineers in respect of the value of the special items and there being some dispute regarding the payments of the architect's fees, in order to meet the ends of justice, it would be proper to reduce the overall cost of constructions by 20% of the total estimation given by the prosecution witnesses. In this way, by reducing the total cost of constructions by 20%, the cost of the new and additional constructions of the buildings effected by the accused during the check period is determined at Rs. 22,53,92,344.00. Under the heading of 'Gold and Diamond Jewellery', the learned Sessions Judge at paragraph 79.18 has observed as under: 79.18) Thus, what emerges from the above evidence is that, at the commencement of the check period, A-1 was in possession of only 7040 grams of gold jewellery. As already noted above, A-1 herself has ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... these jewellery. The fact that in 1992 while preparing the valuation reports in relation to the gold jewellery possessed by A-1, separate valuation reports were prepared in the name of A-2 leads to the inference that in order to avoid the large scale disclosure of the gold and diamond jewellery possessed by A-1, some of these items were declared in the name of A-2. This amounts to a serious instance of abetment and conspiracy alleged against the accused. The very fact A-2 is unable to explain the source of acquisitions of these valuables, it could be presumed that A-2 has aided and abetted A-1 in holding the said assets in her name. 79.20) From the above evidence, the prosecution has proved the seizure of gold and diamond jewellery of the total weight of 27588 grams. But as it is proved in evidence that 7040 grams of gold and diamond jewellery were in possession of A-1 prior to the check period, the said quantity is required to be left out from the total computation of the value of the gold and diamond jewellery found in the possession of A-1. Thus, the total weight of the gold jewellery found in the possession of A-1 as on 30.04.1996 comes to 20548 grams. 79.21) Regarding the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... -1 acquired during the check period. The trial Court has computed the value of the fixed deposits and shares amounting to Rs. 3,42,62,728/-. 258 Fixed Deposit in Canara Bank Mylapore in the name of Selvi J.Jayalalitha under Kamadenu Deposit. (KDR No.950485 dt 27.5.94) 16,03,545.00 259 F.D. in Canara Bank Mylapore in the name of M/s. Jaya Publications under Kamadenu Deposit (KDR No.941263 dt. 19.9.94) 1,49,544.00 260 F.D. in Canara Bank Mylapore in the name of M/s. Jaya Publications under Kamadenu Deposit (TDR No.649868 dt. 20.4.95) 5,00,000.00 261 F.D. in Canara Bank Mylapore branch in the name of M/s. Jaya Publications (KDR /941261 dt. 19.9.94) 71,218.00 262 F.D. in IB, Abirampuram in the name ofM/s. Super Duper (P) Ltd., (TDR/649865 dt. 25.3.95) 5,00,000.00 263 -do-(TDR/649866 dt. 25.3.95) 5,00,000.00 264 -do-(TDR/ 649867 dt. 25.3.95) 5,00,000.00 265 F.D. in Kothari Oriental Finance in the name of A-1 (FDR No/ 47740 dt. 29.8.95) 1,00,000.00 266 -do- (FDR/ 64280 dt. 29.7.95) By renewal of FDR 48173 1,00,000.00 267 -do-(FDR 64302 dt. 29.7.95) by renewal of FDR 48172 1,00,000.00 268 F.D. in Sriram investments in the name of A-1 by renewal of FDR (F-1 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d on 31.8.1994 in the name of J. Elavarasi (Lex Property Development (P) Ltd., 85,342.25 197 Cash balance as on 30.4.1996 of C.A. No. 1068 of Indian Bank, Abhiramapuram opened on 30.3.1994 in the name of V.N.Sudhakaran, 1,32,221.00 198 Cash balance as on 30.4.1996 of C.A. No. 2018 of CB, Mylapore opened on 12.10.1990 in the name Selvi J.Jayalalitha, of 19,29,561.58 199 Cash balance as on 30.4.1996 of C.A. No. 1171 of Indian Bank, Abhiramapuram opened on 28.3.1995 in the name of J.Elavarasi. 3,40,527.95 200 Cash balance as on 30.4.1996 of SB Acc. No. 23832 of CB, Mylapore opened on 16.4.1991 in the name of Selvi J. Jayalalitha, 1,70,570.13 201 Cash balance as on 30.4.1996 of C.A. No. 2277 of CB, Mylapore opened on 10.11.1993 in the name of M/s Metal King in which Sasikala is the proprietrix 2,900.28 202 Cash balance as on 30.4.1996 of C.A. No. 2196 of CB, Mylapore opened on 1.12.1992 in the name of Tmt. Sasikala 1,889.28 203 Cash balance as on 30.4.1996 of C.A. No. 2047 of CB, Mylapore opened on 26.9.1990 (on transfer Form Kellys Branch) in the name of Jaya Publications in which Selvi J.Jayalalitha &Tmt. N. Sasikala are the partners, 20,79,885.12 204 Cash bal ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... opened on 27.1.1994 in the name of Tmt. N. Sasikala (M/s Green Garden Apartments Farm House), Tmt. J. Elavarasi & V.N. Sudhakaran, 146.70 220 Cash balance as on 30.4.1996 of C.A. No. 1049 of Indian Bank, Abhiramapuram opened on 27.1.1994 in the name of Tmt. N. Sasikala, V.N. Sudhakaran &Tmt. J.Elavarasi (M/s Jaya Contractors & Builders), 10,891.00 221 Cash balance as on 30.4.1996 of C.A. No. 1044 of Indian Bank, Abhiramapuram opened on 15.12.1993 in the name of Selvi J. Jayalalitha & Tmt. N. Sasikala (M/s Sasi Enterprises), 1,02,490.18 222 Cash balance as on 30.4.1996 of C.A. No. 1149 of Indian Bank, Abhiramapuram opened on 23.3.1995 in the name of V. N. Sudhakaran, Tmt. J. Elavarasi & Tmt. N.Sasikala (M/s Sakthi Construcitons), 1,02,490.00 223 Cash balance as on 30.4.1996 of C.A. No. 1146 of Indian Bank, Abhiramapuram opened on 23.3.1995 in the name of Tmt. N. Sasikala, Tmt. J. Elavarasi & V.N. Sudhakaran (M/s Gopal Promoters), 1,02,490.18 224 Cash balance as on 30.4.1996 of C.A. No. 1140 of Indian Bank, Abhiramapuram opened on 23.3.1995 in the name of Tmt. N. Sasikala, Tmt. J. Elavarasi & V.N.Sudhakaran (M/s Lakshmi Constructions), 1,02,490.18 225 Cash balance a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... y of statement of account of CA No. 23832 of A-1 in Canara Bank, Mylapore from 16.4.1991 to 2.8.1999; 201 2081 True extract of statement of account of CA No. 2277 of M/s Metal King in Canara Bank, Mylapore from 11.11.1993 to 23.9.1996; 202 1519 Statement of account of CA No. 2196 in the name of A-2 in Canara Bank, Mylapore from 1.12.1992 to 30.11.1993; 203 1903 Statement of account of CA No. 2047 of M/s Jaya Publications in Canara Bank, Mylapore from 1.7.1991 to 11.9.1996; 204 1510 Statement of account of SB No. 23218 in the name of A-2 in Canara Bank, Mylapore from 23.5.1990 to 28.4.1997; 205 2081 Statement of account 206 1576 Statement of account of A-3of Acc. No. FGCA 2220 in Canara Bank, Mylapore from1.4.1994 to 10.4.1999; 207 1966 Statement of account of CA No. 1689 of Maha Subhalakshmi Kalyana Mandapam in Canara Bank, Anna Nagar (East) from 27.8.1993 to 31.12.1996; 208 1572 Statement of account of V.N. Sudhakaran of SB Acc.No. 24621 in Canara Bank, Mylapore from 25.2.1992 to 2.8.1999; 209 1106 True extract of statement of account of Jaya Finance Pvt., Ltd., in C.A. No. 1179 in Indian Bank, Abhiramapuram Branch; 210 1618 Statement of account of A- ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... underabad in the name of N. Sasikala from 29.1.1993 to 17.9.1996; 300 975 True xerox copy of extract of SB Acc. No. 38671 of Canara Bank, Kellys Branch, Madras in the name of J. Jayalalitha; 977 True xerox copy of extract of SB Acc. No. 38746 of Canara Bank, Kellys Branch, Madras in the name of Mrs. Sasikala; 304 1635 Statement of account of M/s Namadhu MGR in CA No. 1952 in Canara Banka, Mylapore from 1.7.1991 to 30.4.1996; The learned Sessions Judge has discussed at para-83 VIII) Vehicles pertaining to item Nos. 230-257, 299. The learned Sessions Judge has assessed the value of about 40 vehicles. The costliest vehicle amongst these is Mercedes Benz (TN-09/P-6565) and cost of the same is Rs. 9.15 Lakh. Total value amounts to Rs. 1,29,94,033.05. This amount is accepted. Para-84 of the impugned judgment deals with IX) Machineries pertaining to Item Nos. 293, 294. PW. 115 - Mariyappan, employee of PW. D. at the relevant time has been examined in proof of the above items. According to him, there were 55 machines in Anjaneya Printers (P) Ltd., and 19 machines in Metal King. DW. 89 - T. Ananthakrishnan, Manager of M/s. Anjaneya Printers (P) Ltd., has deposed that the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... dated 25.06.1994 reads that Rs. 40,96,565/- is credited to the loan account of Tamil Arasi by clearing the cheque bearing No. 009. The said cheque is marked as Ex. P.1238 and is seen to have been drawn towards the repayment of loan account of Tamil Arasi and Ex. P.1239, another cheque dated 22.6.1994 is issued by M/s. Anjaneya Printers (P) Ltd., in the name of Indian Bank A/c. Tamil Arasi. But as already stated, these cheques are dated 22.6.94, but the invoice Ex. D.276 is dated 28.05.1995 for Rs. 53 lakhs. Though it is argued that the amounts of the cheques Ex. P.1238 and P.1239 amount to Rs. 53 lakhs, the invoice Ex. D.276 dated 28.5.1995 cannot be co-related to the above cheque payments. This invoice Ex. D.276 appears to have been got up later. While appreciating the contention urged by the accused, another important aspect to be taken note of is that, the bank account of M/s. Anjaneya Printers(P) Ltd., was opened only on 23.01.1994 with a cash deposit of Rs. 501/-. The said C.A. No. 1053 maintained by M/s. Anjaneya Printers (P) Ltd., with Indian Bank, Abirampuram Branch, contains the following credit entries. Date : 23-01.94 - By Cash - Rs. 15 lakhs Date : 19.02.94 - Cle ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ore, the entire amount under this head is deducted. At para-86 of the impugned judgment deals with Sarees. The learned Sessions Judge at para-86.2 has made the following observation: Admittedly, no one has laid a claim to the sarees seized from the house of A-1. Therefore, the argument of the learned counsel that there is no evidence to show that the seized sarees exclusively belonged to A-1 holds no water. There is no dispute regarding the number of sarees valued by PW. 133. Though the number looks stupefying, yet, it should not be forgotten that, prior to joining politics, A-1 was in Cine field, therefore, there is nothing unusual in having a taste for costly and fancy sarees by A-1. In any case, there being no specific evidence that all the sarees noted in the above observation mahazars were purchased during the check period, it would not be safe to hold that the sarees listed therein were acquired by A-1 during the check period. Hence the value shown under this head cannot be allowed. Para-87 of the impugned judgment deals with Watches. PW. 129 identified the seven wrist watches and specified their valuation as under: 1. M.O.584 is Rs. 5,000/- 2. M.O.585 is Rs. 8,000/- ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... arned Counsel that if in fact these watches were manufactured during the check period, the prosecution could have procured the brochure or the price list from the Company which would have ruled out the possibility of A-1 possessing the said watches prior to the check period. Therefore, it is the submission of the learned Counsel that in the absence of any such evidence, solely on the basis of the oral testimony of PW. 129 whose evidence cannot be treated that of an expert; A-1 cannot be called upon to explain the exorbitant valuation shown by the prosecution under this head. As the learned Counsel for the accused has raised serious objection regarding the valuation of MOs. 587 and 590, it may be necessary to refer to the description of these two articles in MO. 739 which reads as follows: "4 - Rolex Ladies 18k - Rs.3,75,000/-(18 carat gold-750) "Oyster perpetual Date just Superlative Chronometic officially certified" Automatic Date, Beoyel set in 40 real Diamonds and 10 real diamonds on dial with 18k bracelet center second wrist Watch. Reference Numbers: Back (Model) reference 69000A Caliber No : 2135 Movement No : 1870313 Serial No : 69138 (12 side) Serial No : E 31 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he oral evidence adduced by the prosecution in proof of the valuation of the wrist watches is liable to be discarded in entirety. 87.7) From the above evidence, prosecution has proved that, these watches were in the possession of A-1. It is not the case of A-1 that these watches belong to any other persons. In order to substantiate the charge u/Sec. 13(1)(e) of the Act, the prosecution must prove the nature and extent of the pecuniary resources or property which are found in possession of the accused. Once this ingredient is established, the burden of satisfactorily accounting for the possession of such resource shifts to the accused. Though the standard of proof may not be as heavy as on the prosecution, yet, the explanation offered must be reasonable and plausible. In the instant case, A-1 has not offered any explanation with regard to the possession of the said watches. There is absolutely no mention whatsoever about the acquisition of these costly watches in her wealth returns. A-1 did not offer any explanation at the earliest point of time that these watches were purchased by her prior to the check period. Under the said circumstance, the only inference that could be drawn i ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nterprises (P) Ltd., (f) Indo Doha Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Pvt. Ltd., The learned Sessions Judge has observed in respect of the Lex Property Development Pvt. Ltd. as under: A perusal of the evidence of PW. 182 PW. 177, PW. 132 PW. 127 PW. 100 PW. 94 and PW. 51 coupled with Exs. P.135, P.136, P.569 to P.574, P.647 to P.650, P.717, P.744 to P.763 and P.1005 to P.1008 reveal that M/s. Lex Property Developments Pvt. Ltd., was incorporated under the Companies Act, 1956 on 25.09.1990 with registration No. 18-19704 of 1990 with the main objects to carry on the business of proprietors of land, flats, shops, dwelling houses, industrial estates, commercial complexes and to acquire by purchase, lease, exchange, rent or otherwise deal in lands and buildings and any estates and to carry on the business of builders machinery, engineers, general construction and contractors. As per Memorandum of Association Ex. P.568 the company was started by Sri. S. Sreenivasalu Reddy and P.V. Ravikumar as the promoters and the directors of the said company. Initially, the registered office of the company was at No. 120, Theyagaraja Road, T. Nagar, Madras which was later changed to No. 27, Lake Area, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... and P.V. Ravikumar resigned from the board on 29.08.1994 and A-2 and A-3 were appointed as additional directors of the company on 17.08.1994. According to the prosecution, after A-3 and A-4 assumed the Directorship of the aforesaid company, number of properties were purchased in the name of the company. During trial, the prosecution has got marked the copies of the two sale deeds dated 28.12.1994 (Ex. P.135 and Ex. P.136) executed by Mrs. A. Arifa Amanuallah W/o. M.O. Amanuallah in favour of Lex Property Developments Private Limited in respect of the land measuring 11 cents with building comprised in Survey No. 74/1 Old No. 152 and 152-A situate in Nilangari Village, Saidapet Taluk, M.G.R. District respectively. In proof of the said sale deeds, the prosecution has examined PW. 51 the husband of the vendor who has deposed that his father-in-law purchased the aforesaid property in the name of his wife and they built a house therein by spending Rs. 11.00 lakhs. A-2 and A-3 agreed to purchase the said lands for Rs. 25.00 lakhs and paid Rs. 10.00 lakhs in cash and the remaining Rs. 15.00 lakhs was paid by means of two D.Ds for Rs. 6,80,000/- and Rs. 8,20,000/-. According to PW. 51, th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... cation as one of the directors of the Company. 89.10) PW. 177 Shanmugha Sundaram, the Deputy General Manager of Indian Bank at the relevant time has spoken about the loan availed by M/s. Lex Property Development Pvt. Ltd., The prosecution has produced the original request made by the Lex Property Development Pvt. Ltd., for grant of finance for construction of marriage Hall at No. 149, 150 TTK Road as per Ex. P.1328, marked through PW. 182. A-3 has signed this letter requesting for a loan of Rs. 133.00 lakhs as project cost and Rs. 24.00 lakhs towards the term loan to fund the constructions of the marriage hall. In the letter According to this witness a letter dated 22.09.1994 was received from Abirampuram Indian Bank, Branch to the Regional Office to give long term loan of Rs. 133.00 lakhs and term loan of Rs. 24,00,000/- to Lex Property Development Pvt. Ltd., as per Ex. P.1005. Ex. P.1006 is the recommendation letter of the Branch Manager. These documents were sent from Regional office to Zonal office and the Regional Office sent a letter dated 15.11.1994 to Zonal Manager with recommendation as per Ex. P.1007. 89.11) It is interesting to note that though Ex. P.1005 is said to ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... properties and construction of structures commenced only during the tenure of A-3 and A-4 as the Directors of this Company. At the relevant point of time, A-3 and A-4 were in control and management of the affairs of the Company. The above evidence points out that, even though the Company was incorporated in 1990, the Bank A/c. was opened only after A-3 and A-4 took reign of the Company and all the transactions have taken place through Bank account opened by A-3. Except the use of the name of the Company, there is nothing on record to show that the funds of the erstwhile Company or its Directors are utilized for acquisition of these assets. As per Ex. P.572 A-3 and A-4 resigned from the board of Lex Property Developments Pvt. Ltd., on 04.03.1996. The learned Sessions Judge has observed in respect of the Meadow Agro Farms Ltd., as under: 90. As per the evidence of PW. 94 R. Lakshmi Narayana, P.A. to the Company Registrar, Meadow Agro Farms Pvt. Ltd., was registered in the office of the Company Registrar on 11.10.1990 with Registration No. 19758/1990 (vide Ex. P594 - Certificate of Registration). The promoters of the company were Krishna Kumar Reddy and Anil Kumar Reddy. This witn ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 15.03.1995 in favour of Maedows Agro Farms ltd., for Rs. 54,050/-. Further this witness has deposed that on the strength of the power of attorney Ex. P.206 executed by its vendors, he executed the sale deed in favour of Maedow Agro Farms Ltd., on 29.04.1995 as per Ex. P.207 and on the strength of the power of attorneys Ex. P.208 to 213, he executed the sale deed in respect of 15.71 acres of land on 29.04.1995. It is the further evidence of PW. 56 that on the strength of the power of attorneys Ex. P.215 to P.220, he executed a sale deed in favour of Maedow Agro Farms Ltd., on 09.06.1995 as per Ex. P.221. According to this witness, "all the above documents were registered in the office of the North Chennai Sub-Registrar before D.I.G. and the expenses for the documents were borne by Sudhakaran on behalf of the Maedow Agro Farms Ltd.," Thus, according to PW. 56, under the above sale deeds he sold 105.991/2 acres of land and received a total sale price of Rs. 10.60 lakhs. In the cross-examination he denied the suggestion that A-3 Sudhakaran has not given him Rs. 3.00 lakhs as advance. The evidence of this witness regarding the execution of the various sale deeds mentioned above on the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s are shown as (1) K. Krishnakumar Reddy and (2) K. Anil Kumar Reddy. As already stated above, PW. 106 Sri. Krishnakumar Reddy has unequivocally has stated before the Court that, he and the other Director signed certain forms in 1994 and sold the Company and they are not in possession of the Company. Ex. P.601 produced by the prosecution unimpeachably establishes that both the said Directors have resigned on 03.08.1994. But, curiously they are shown as the Directors of the Company on the date of the order i.e., 30.03.2000, which itself is sufficient to discard the document as unreliable. Even otherwise, the contents of the said document do not advance the defence set up by A-3. In the said order it is noted that the Company had practically no business activities since its inception and had not filed any return of income and for the assessment year 1996-97 also, the assessee did not file any return of income and is only after notices were issued, the return of income came to be filed on 29.03.2000 admitting NIL income. 90.20) What turns out from the above evidence is that, even though the Company was registered as back as in 1990, it had no business activities whatsoever, until th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he Directors post from 18.07.1994 and w.e.f. 10.08.1994. The other details of the money deposited into this Current A/c. No. 1095 are as under: Pay-in-slip No. Date Person signed in the slip and the address given Cash amount Rs. Ex.P.1301 03.12.94 M. Jayaraman, 36, Poes Garden, Chennai-86. 22,41,000 Ex.P.1302 07.01.95 M.Jayaraman 15,00,000 Ex.P.1303 10.01.95 M.Jayaraman 25,00,000 Ex.P.1304 12.01.95 M. Jayaraman, 36, Poes Garden, Chennai-86. 25,00,000 Ex.P.1305 25.04.95 Ram Vijayan, 21, First Floor, 91, Anna Salai, Chennai-2. 19,00,000 Ex.P.1306 27.04.95 No details of the remittee 20,00,000 Ex.P.1307 28.04.95 Ram vijayan, 21, Fist Floor, 91, Anna Salai, Chennai-2 19,90,000 Ex.P.1308 23.05.94 Dr. S.Radha, No.90, Anna Salai, Chennai. (Signature is not clear) 6,28,600 91.3) This witness has also spoken about the money transferred to this account from various other accounts as under; Date Details of Transfer Amount Rs. 24.09.94 By Transfer 10,00,000 26.10.94 By Transfer 3,00,000 17.11.94 By Transfer from Current a/c.1107 10,75,000 09.08.95 By Transfer 4,00,000 02.02.96 By Transfer from Current a/c.1050 96,000 20.02.96 By ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... stated on oath that pursuant to the advertisement given by him in 'Dinathand' and 'Hindu' one Krishnan, an accountant from Riverway Agro Products Pvt. Ltd., approached him and his friends regarding the sale of lands and he and his friends doing the real estate business approached the land owners and got the power of attorneys and executed the sale deeds in favour of Riverway Agro Products Pvt. Ltd., During his evidence PW. 76 deposed that, land owners gave commission for him and other brokers and he did not receive an other commission. He further deposed that, he did not have any contact with Thiru Rajagopal, District Registrar and he did not know PW. 71 Radhakrishnan. He also asserted that he did not know Sudhakaran, has only heard his name. He also resiled from his earlier statement that he had informed Rajagopal, District Registrar about the availability of the land and they had been to Tirunelveli. He denied that on 8th and 9th July 1994 Thiru Rajagopal introduced Sudhakaran to him at Thirunelveli. He also denied having visited Thirunelveli along with the said Rajagopal and maintained that all the transactions were carried out at the instance of Krishnan, accoun ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ns Judge has observed in respect of the Ramraj Agro Mills Ltd., as under: PW. 52 Gandhi has deposed that he and Ramraj Agro Mills Ltd., had bought 6,10,000/- shares at the rate of Rs. 5/- per share. He could not get proper income from the said mill and decided to sell it. In 1994, Ramaswamy Udayar brought Sudhakaran to them and asked them to sell the mill. They negotiated and agreed to sell it at the rate of Rs. 3/- per share. Sudhakaran, Sundaravadanan, Ilavarasi and Prabha took over the Board of Management and in all 6,18,000 shares were bought by them. PW. 90 Tmt. Sheela Balakarishnan, Secretary in Employee and Admn. Reforms Dept., has deposed that Ramraj Agro Mills Ltd., took assistance from SPICOT. The Chairman of Ramraj Agro Mills Ltd., Mr. Gandhi wrote a letter to the Managing Director of SPICOT Company as per Ex. P-541 informing that V.N. Sudhakaran and J. Elavarasi were appointed as Joint Directors of the said Firm. The existing members Gandhi, Asokan, Satthivelu and Magilavannam also wrote a letter as per Ex. P-542 informing that they had resigned from their post. Through this witness, the prosecution has marked Exs. P-544 to P-547. Mr. Lakshmi Narayanan, P.A., to the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... dhi in favour of Ramraj Agro Mills Ltd., shop No. 21, Wellington Plaza, Anna Salai, Madras for Rs. 1,78,200/- paid by means of a DD bearing No. 626333, Dt. 7.1.1995 drawn on Indian Bank in respect of 8.91 acres comprised in Sy. Nos. 77/1A, 77/1C, 77/1B/82/1A situate in Vandampalai village. Ex. P-147 is the certified copy of the sale deed (document No. 74) of January, 1995 executed by Tmt. Rajamani Ammal, represented by her power of attorney Mr. Asokan in favour of Ramraj Agro Mills Ltd., shop No. 21, Wellington Plaza, Anna Salai, Madras in respect of 4.57 acres comprised in Sy. Nos. 75, 76/5, 76/2A and 77/1D situate in Vandampalai village for a consideration of Rs. 1,62,000/- by means of Bankers Payment Order bearing No. 121333, Dt. 7.1.1995 issued by the Indian Bank, Madras-18. Item No. 146- Cost of construction of labour quarters (five) in ground floor and five in 1st floor, 10 numbers in ground floor and 10 numbers in 1st floor, construction of 1st floor for guest house, over the existing ground floor and construction of platform in Ramraj Agro Mills campus at Vandampalai during 1994-95 (Evaluation report) - Rs. 57,19,800.00 Item No. 147, Cost of constructions of compound wal ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... In the cross-examination, it is elicited that there was no written order to inspect the buildings. From 27.11.1996 to 29.11.1996 when they inspected the buildings, two workers from the mill assisted them in digging and other allied works. It is elicited that the court order was not issued and he did not serve any written notice on the company. It is further elicited that the Electrical Engineer, who assessed the electrical works belong to the Public Works Department. In those buildings, workers quarters (30 residences in two buildings), a godown, a guest house in the 1st floor and the compound wall were completely done. In the bungalow for the Managing Director, two twin houses and a house of quarters were built. Electrical fittings were not fixed and the final coat of painting was also not done. In the cross-examination, it is elicited that the reports were written in two different ink pens. The Asst. Engineer, Karunakaran wrote the report. In the report, it was written as 'for the subsequent year' and it was struck and corrected as 'respective' in different ink. It is also elicited that the Asst. Engineer Karunakaran prepared the plan and notes under his supervis ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he subsequent' have been struck off and there is inter-lineations of the portions 'at the respect.' Further, this witness deposed that the report was signed individually and at the time of inspection, no representative of M/s. Ramraj Agro Mills Ltd. was present. In appreciating the testimony of this witness, it is relevant to note that this witness has not disputed the fact that he was also one of the members of the team along with PW. 153 in the assessment and valuation of the workers quarters and the compound wall. He has not denied the fact that during the inspection, the measurements of the buildings were taken and the rates were determined on the basis of the PW. D rates. As a matter of fact, Ex. P-822 not only contains the report duly signed by PW. 153, DW. 81 and other Engineers including the Electrical Engineer, who were part of the assessment team, but also contains the detailed estimate with reference to the measurements of individual items of works running to nearly 219 pages and along with the plan of the buildings and the compound wall duly signed by all the above persons including DW. 81, which has remained un-impeached. No doubt, it is true that in the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n in government service. His evidence suggests that either he has been careless or negligent in performance of his duties or that he has deliberately given false evidence unmindful of the consequences that would emanate from his evidence. Nevertheless, it stands established that, by the statements made before the court, he has rendered himself liable for Departmental Enquiry for the misconduct referred above. 92.27) In so far as the documents produced by the accused is concerned, it is necessary to note that Ramraj Agro Mills Ltd., is a public limited company. As per the provisions of the Companies Act, it is required to maintain proper accounts complying with the accounting standards. At every annual meeting, the Board of Directors are required to lay the balance sheet, profit and loss accounts statement and report of the Directors etc., which would have been the best evidence regarding the share capital, reserves and liabilities of the company. But, strangely in proof of the asset s and liabilities of the company, the accused have relied on the oral testimony of DW. 87 the Chartered Accountant, who is stated to have been involved in the auditing of the accounts of M/s. Ramraj A ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ave examined the author of Ex. D-208 or the recipient thereto. Ex. D-208 is said to be the conformation letter issued by Magunta Investments Pvt. Ltd., in proof of the loan availed by the company. It is Dt. 8.2.1996, which reads as under; "Paid to M/s. Ramraj Agro Mills Pvt. Ltd., DD (vide Global Trust Bank Ltd. Ch. No. 017715, Dt. 8.2.1996) for Rs. 1,00,00,000/- (Rs. One Crore only) towards I.C.D., Sd./- For MAGUNTA INVESTMENTS PVT. LTD., Director/Authorized signatory." 92.29) There is absolutely no supporting document by way of bank payment book or proof of either issuance of DD or the cheque or encashment by M/s. Ramraj Agro Mills Ltd., in proof of the said loan. The accused have sought to sustain the defence solely on the basis of Auditor's report and the so-called profit and loss account statement and the balance sheet, which undoubtedly has been got up without any basis or supporting bank documents required under the Companies Act. 92.30) The testimony of PW. 182 the Chief Manager, Indian Bank, Abhiramapuram Branch reveals that, by submitting an application, Dt. 22.12.1994 as per Ex. P.1341, A-3 opened C.A. No. 1143 in the name of Ramraj Agro Mills Ltd., compa ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ls Ltd., Ex. P-1350 is the photo copy of Form No. 32. One Gandhi has signed in it on 19.2.1994. Ex. P-1351 is the letter signed and submitted by V.N. Sudhakaran asking for a loan of Rs. 200 lakh for the company. Ex. P-1352 is the sanction ticket received from their head office sanctioning a loan (OCC) of Rs. 165 lakh and it is Dt. 24.3.1995. Ex. P.1353 is the copy of the telex message sent from the central office asking to transfer the sanctioned loan of Rs. 165 lakh to the same company's account in the Thiruvarur Branch of Indian Bank. Ex. P-1354 is the statement of account of OCC-19. On 23.2.1995 an amount of Rs. 50 lakh has been transferred from this account to OD-78. On 11.3.1995 an amount of Rs. 50,03,500/- has been debited by cheque by MT. Thiruvarur. On 26.3.1995 an amount of Rs. 55,38,023.65 has been transferred from OD-78 account to this account and debited. Money has been credited into this account many times by MT Thiruvarur. As on 30.4.1996 in this account, the amount due to the bank was Rs. 39,10,781/-. An amount of Rs. 17,93,002/- was debited from this account towards interest till 30.4.1996. The learned Sessions Judge has observed in respect of the Signora Busin ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 17.8.1994 and resigned on 5.3.1996 and 12.3.1996 respectively. There is nothing on record to show that the company had filed any Annual Returns or the Balance sheet subsequent to A-3 and A-4 became the Directors thereof. There is also nothing on record to show that either A-3 or A-4 had subscribed the shares of the company or had contributed to the capital of the company. 93.2) Regarding various properties purchased by this Firm after A-3 and A-4 became its Directors, PW. 9 Sadagopan, the Sub-Registrar, Cheyyur has deposed that, during the year 1993 when he was working as Sub-Registrar at Seyyoor, he registered the sale deed executed by M/s. K. Appaswamy Mudaliar and others in favour of Signora Business Enterprises Pvt. Ltd., for Rs. 27,720/- on 8.12.1993 as per Ex. P-34. On 1.2.1994 another sale deed was registered as per Ex. P-35 in favour of the said Firm for Rs. 84,400/- in respect of 1.14 acres of land. The market value of the said property was Rs. 1,45,800/-. Ex. P-33 is another sale deed registered in favour of Signora Business Enterprises Pvt. Ltd., for Rs. 16,800/-. The market value of this property was Rs. 28,760/-. On 26.5.1993 another sale deed Ex. P-36 was registere ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 10/- per share. The shares so purchased in 1992 were sold in the year 1994 to Sudhakaran for Rs. 27,41,000/- and the amount was paid through Canara Bank cheque. PW. 90 Tmt. Sheela Balakrishnan, Secretary Administration Reforms Department, has deposed that the Chairman of the Ramraj Agro Mills Ltd., Gandhi, wrote a letter to the Managing Directors of SIPCOT Company stating that, V.N. Sudhakaran, T.V. Sundaravadanam, J. Elavarasi and Tmt. Prabha were appointed as additional directors. The existing members Gandhi, Asokan, Satyavel, Mahilavannan wrote a letter stating that they withdrew from their post. The said letter is Ex. P.542. SIPCOT agreed for the change of administration. Ex. P.544 is the resolution of the Board of Meeting. PW. 92 - Ketan Gandhi, Executive Director of Interface Capital Market Private Limited corroborated the testimony of PW. 85 regarding the purchase of shares stating that, Interface Capital Market Pvt. Ltd., purchased 2,20,000 shares of Indo-Doha Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Ltd., at Rs. 10/- per share. According to this witness after they invested in the company, the company did not make any profits. Hence they tried to sell the shares and in 1994 Ind Bank ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the statement made by him during his chief-examination to the effect that they were ready to transfer 8,56,636 shares of the company for which V.N. Sudhakaran gave them three cheques viz., cheque for Rs. 20.00 lakhs, Canara Bank, Mylapore, cheque for Rs. 20.00 lakhs Indian Bank, Mandhaveli, and cheque for Rs. 10.00 lakhs and the transfer of shares and regarding the transfer of his shares, he received only Rs. 20.00 lakhs from the third accused and Rs. 20.00 lakhs is with him is correct. PW. 93 answered that, due to the age factor, his memory power has gone weak and therefore he is not in a position to say which of the statement is correct. 94.8) From the above evidence, it could be deduced that, (i) At the relevant time of acquisition of the above properties, all the above six companies were exclusively in the control and management of A-2 to A-4. As already highlighted above, the promoters had already resigned in favour of A-2 to A-4. Except Indo Doha Pharmaceuticals Company Pvt. Ltd., all other promoters and erstwhile Directors have unequivocally stated before the Court that, on receipt of the amount invested by them for the formation of the Companies, they signed the necessa ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d Counsel for the accused. It is proved in evidence that, no funds of the above named companies were utilized for the acquisition of the properties. It is an admitted fact that, none of the companies had filed returns either before the Registrar of Companies or before the Income Tax Authorities declaring the funds for the purchase of the properties or the acquisitions alleged to have been made in the name of the Companies." In the instant case, Sections 209, 210, 211 and 215 of the Companies Act, 1956, have not been complied. Returns have not been filed by the respective companies from the date of its incorporation till the date of attachment of the properties. 94.16) Sec. 220 of the Companies Act, lays down that, "After the balance sheet and profit and loss account have been laid before a company at an annual general meeting as aforesaid, there shall be filed with the Registrar within 30 days from the date on which the balance sheet and the profit and loss account were so laid or where the annual general meeting of a company for any year has not been held, there shall be filed with the Registrar within 30 days from the latest day on or before which that meeting should have been ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the above orders that the consideration for purchase of the properties did not represent the funds of the respective companies. In the light of these findings, the contentions raised by the accused that the properties in question absolutely belong to the above Companies and therefore could not have been tagged to the assets of A-l on the basis of benami cannot be accepted. 94.18) The argument of the learned counsel that the Companies incorporated under the Companies Act cannot hold the properties benami to another person is misconceived and cannot be accepted. No doubt, it is a basic or cardinal principle of law that, on incorporation, a Company acquires legal status with perpetual succession and a common seal. Since the Company has no physical existence, it must act through its agents and all such contracts entered into by its agents must be under the seal of the Company. The common seal of the company is of great importance. It acts as the official signature of the Company. A document not bearing the common seal of the Company is not authentic and has no legal force behind it. But unfortunately, in the instant case, hardly any document of title registered in the name of the ab ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... sonality of the Company and identify the real personalities or natural persons operating behind the veil. This is one of such case where overwhelming evidence is available to show that the name of the Companies is used by the accused to make acquisitions by diverting the funds illegally amassed by A-1 during her tenure as Chief-Minister. 94.21) The facts and circumstances proved in the case undoubtedly establish that the accused have adopted an ingenious ploy or device in furtherance of their criminal conspiracy to shield the properties acquired through commission of offence. The illegally amassed wealth running to nearly 3000 acres of land is sparked in these shell Companies, obviously for the reason that this arrangement provides a convenient leeway to enjoy and deal with the properties registered in the name of the Companies and even dispose them of merely by passing a mere resolution. Therefore, the intention of the accused in buying over the above Companies and taking full control over the management thereof and thereafter acquire large number of properties in the name of the Companies undoubtedly manifests the criminal motive and intention of the accused attracting the ingr ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ence to show that at the relevant time, A-2 to A-4 did not have any source of income commensurate with the value of the properties purchased in their name and all the assets and pecuniary resources described in Annx. II including properties registered in the name of the above six companies were acquired out of the source provided by A-1. In this context, it may be pertinent to ascertain the antecedents of A-2 to A-4 and their financial status. As already stated above, A-2 to A-4 are not related to A-1 either by blood or through any other relationship. A-1 is a spinster. According to the prosecution, A-2 came to reside with A-1 at Poes Garden in the year 1988, which fact has not been disputed. PW. 169 Sri. R. Krishna Murthy has stated about the occupation of the husband of A-2 stating that, Tr. M. Natarajan joined the Government service as Assistant to the then Social Service Dept. Later, he was placed as Information Public Relations Officer on 30.11.1970 and continued in that post till 31.07.1976. Later in 1980 he was posted in the same post and continued there till 1988. In his service records, he appointed his wife Sasikala as nominee. He had received Rs. 3,000/- as scooter advan ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ng the income generated by A-3 from the said business. Thus, the evidence on record clearly points out that A-3 had no independent source of income. Yet, large number of properties are seen to have been registered in his name. Likewise, it is proved in evidence that A-4 had also no independent source of income. It has come in evidence that, she came to reside at Poes Garden after the untimely demise of her husband who was also in Govt. service and she received the death benefits of the deceased which were the only funds available at her disposal. She did not possess any immovable properties in her name. On the other hand, it is proved in evidence that, she was also allotted a site by the Tamil Nadu Housing Board as per Ex. P.719 and she had submitted a declaration to the effect that her annual income was only Rs. 48,000/- in 1992. Even during her examination u/Sec. 313 Cr.P.C., she has not disputed this fact, which goes to show that even A-4 did not possess any wherewithals to make the huge acquisitions in her name, but for the patronage of A-1. 95.5) It is proved in evidence that, during the check period, A-3 acquired the following properties either in his individual name or in ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n 13,562.00 44 Interest from FDR 238/93 of Canara Bank Mylapore for Rs. 5,00,000/- by renewal of FDR 1401/92 12,329.00 45 Hire charges from Act India Ltd., for the Vehicle No.TSR 333 "Swaraj Mazda Van" owned by V.N.Sudhakaran from 3.2.93 9,18,910.00 46 Brokerage charges received by V.N.Sudhakaran for the Deposits made by Selvi J. Jayalalitha in Can Finance Home Ltd., vide FDRs No.186/91-92 and 352/94-95 3,00,000.00 ANNEXURE - IV S.NO. Details of Expenditure Amount in (Rs.) 159 Amount paid to Tr. Sampath from CA 2220 of Canara Bank Mylapore on Tr. VN Sudhakaran on 26.10.95 34,960.00 160 Amount paid to Madras Telephones from CA 2220 of Canara Bank Mylapore of Tr. VN Sudhakaran on 19.09.95, 7.11.95, 11.1.96, 26.2.96 and 26.4.96 (Rs. 399 x 5) 1,995.00 161 Amount debited towards DD commission from CA 2220 of Canara Bank Mylapore of Tr. VN Sudhakaran on 16.7.93, 17.1.94, 19.1.94 and 14.5.94 300.00 162 Interest paid towards TOD from CA 2220 of Canara Bank Mylapore of Tr. VN Sudhakaran on 31.12.94, 15.12.95 and 7.3.96 (Rs. 813 + 930 + (360) 2,103.00 163 Amount paid to Tr. Krishna from CA 2220 of Canara Bank Mylapore of Tr. VN Sudhakaran on 9.11.94 2,500 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 17.1.94 Rs. 96,350/- on 26.12.94 Rs. 5 lakhs Rs. 1,88,000/- on 18.3.95, 2 lakhs on 18.8.95 and over and above this, smaller amounts were withdrawn on different dates. A cheque dated 16.7.93 for Rs. 16,81,000/- was issued to the bank and deducted from this current account. The cheques which were signed by V.N. Sudhakaran are indeed Ex. P.1577. This cheque was issued to the bank for the purchase of demand draft. There are 6 entries on 29.1.94. The cheques were issued due to each for Rs. 5000/- to J. Real Estate, JJ Leasing J.S. Housing, Jaya Contractors, Green Farm, J. Farm House, and the amount was deducted from this current account. An amount of Rs. 2 lakhs was transferred through cheque from this account to Sasikala's account C.A. No. 2196 on 18.3.94. On 21.3.95 an amount of Rs. 10,88,000/- was transferred to M/s. Anjaneya Printers (P) Ltd., account. On 14.5.94 a cheque was issued to the bank for a sum of Rs. 82,500/- to purchase a D.D. which was deducted from this account. The application which was signed by Ram Vijayan to purchase a Demand Draft in the name of Muniyan for Rs. 82,500/- is Ex. P.1578. A cheque for Rs. 1,50,000/- in the name of Ramayi Ammal was presented on 2 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ess by constituting two partnership firms by name Jaya Publications and Sasi Enterprises. As per PW. 123 Jaya Publications was registered under the Sales Tax Act on 29.09.1988 in the Sales Tax office and its main business was printing. The object of the Company was offset printing for partnership. The original partners were A-1, A-2 Divakaran and Dinakaran. The certificate of registration is marked as Ex. P.692. Ex. P.693 is the certificate issued by Central Sales Tax. This witness has categorically stated that, Jaya Publications did not file returns up to 1998 as per the sales Tax Act. 96.8) Thus, it could be seen that the business activities in the name of A-2 to A-4 were started only during the check period and it is established in evidence that the said firms did not invest any funds of their own to run the business, instead, it is proved in evidence that, these firms facilitated A-1 and A-2 to transfer huge unaccounted money through the bank accounts held in the name of these firms. 96.9) In this context, it is pertinent to note that, at the commencement of the check period, there were hardly 10 to 12 bank accounts standing in the name of A-1 and A-2, but during the check ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Anna Nagar Branch Mahasubbu Lakshmi Kalyan Mantap (Accused No.3, A.4 and Shrilatha Devi) 27.08.93 1966 PW.207 27 C.A.No. 1173 Indian Bank, Abirampuram Branch, Chennai Tmt.V.Gunabooshani 05.05.95 1101 PW.209 28 C.A.No. 1179 -do- Jaya Finance Pvt. Ltd., -do- 1106 PW.209 29 C.A.No. 1171 -do- Accused No.4 (Elavarasi) 28.03.95 1129 PW.209 30 C.A.No. 1068 -do- Accused No.3 30.03.94 1111 PW.209 31 C.A.No. 1071 -do- Fresh Mushrooms (A.2) 11.03.94 1117 PW.209 32 C.A.No. 1059 -do- J.J.Leasing and Maintenance 27.01.94 1136 PW.209 33 S.B.No. 4110 -do- J. Vivek 12.09.94 1138 PW.209 34 C.A.No. 1050 -do- J. Real Estate 27.01.94 1160 PW.209 35 C.A.No. 1052 -do- J.S.Housing developments 27.01.94 1170 PW.209 36 C.A.No. 1058 -do- Green Farm House -do- 1189 PW.209 37 C.A.No. 1054 -do- J.Farm House -do- 1207 PW.209 38 C.A.No. 1053 -do- Anjaneya Printers Pvt.Ltd., 23.01.94 1226 PW.209 39 C.A.No. 1049 -do- Jaya Contractors and Builders 27.01.94 1248 PW.209 40 C.A.No. 1044 -do- Sasi Enterprises 15.12.93 1255 PW.209 41 O.C.C.No. 1143 -do- Ramaraj Agro Mills Ltd. 23.12.94 1344 PW.209 42 C.A.No. 11 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... .00 05.01.1996 5,00,000.00 12.01.1996 15,00,000.00 04.03.1996 3,00,000.00 05.03.1996 1,00,000.00 14.03.1996 7,50,000.00 19.03.1996 5,00,000.00 02.04.1996 2,00,000.00 04.04.1996 25,00,000.00 96.15) It is not in dispute that, C.A. No. 1952 stands in the name of Namadhu MGR. According to PW. 1 this account was transferred to their bank from Kelly's Purasawakam Branch on 23.10.1989. The account stood in the name of 4 partners viz., A-1, A-2, Dinakaran and Divakaran. This witness has deposed about various amounts credited to this account No. 1952 in the form of cash and has listed about 313 entries exceeding the amount of Rs. 50,000/- credited to this account from time to time, which itself amounts to a total of Rs. 7,41,05,155.50. 98.1) in the instant case, the accused have failed to offer any satisfactory explanation as to the enormous unexplained credits entered into their bank accounts. Whatever explanation offered by the accused by way of confirmatory letters are proved to be false and bogus. The identity of the persons who provided the source is not proved. The transactions which resulted in the cash credit are also not established. As already disc ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e has also identified the signature of Mr. Vijayan in those challans and has stated that the said Vijayan is no more. The bank officers examined by the prosecution viz., PW. 182 and PW. 201 have identified large number of pay-in-slips marked as Ex. P.1035 - 1100; P.1122 - 1129; P.1299 - 1308; P.1636 - 1919; P.2032 - 2082 and have unequivocally stated that, most of these pay-in-slips bear the name of Vijayan as the person remitting the amount. This evidence undoubtedly establishes that even though large number of accounts were opened either in the names of accused or in the names of the firms or companies, yet, the remittance into the said accounts used to be made only by the staff of A-1 as per the instructions of A-2 who was managing all the financial affairs of A-1. 98.4) There is absolutely no evidence whatsoever to show that, during the check period, either the accused or the firms run by them credited any amounts to the various accounts maintained by them. Except in case of Super Duper T.V. Pvt. Ltd., no other firm or the Company has produced any documents to show that they transacted business during the check period and the income thereof was used to be credited to their ba ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... evidence discussed above establish that the cash or pay orders or D.D.s are drawn from the different bank accounts for the purpose of acquisition of the assets. PW. 201 and PW. 182 have spoken in detail about the pay orders and the D.Ds issues by them at the instance of the accused. The cheques passed by the said banks or the D.Ds or pay orders issued by them directly co-relate to the details of the cheques or pay orders mentioned in the various sale deeds, thereby establishing the fact that the source for the purchase of these properties had flown from the account maintained in the name of the accused. But, as it is proved in evidence that the credits made into these accounts were from the unexplained resources of A-1, it necessarily follows that the funds for acquisition of all these assets are provided by A-1. 98.7) In view of the above finding, I hold that all the assets and pecuniary resources found in possession of A-2 to A-4 and in the name of various firms and the companies referred above actually belong to A-1. As the prosecution has proved beyond reasonable doubt that during the check period, A-1 was found in possession of assets and pecuniary resources of the total va ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... re of the activities carried on by A-2. The circumstance of executing the power of attorney in favour of A-2 indicates that with a view to keep herself secure from legal complications, A-1 executed the said power of attorney knowing fully well that under the said powers, A-2 would be dealing with her funds credited to her account in Jaya Publications. (ii) Constitution of various firms during the check period is another circumstance establishing the conspiracy between the parties. As already stated above, at the beginning of the check period, A-1 and A-2 were involved in only two concerns by name Jaya Publications and Sasi Enterprises. But during the check period, as many as 18 firms have come into existence. But, it is proved in evidence that, none of these firms carried on any business during the check period. There is absolutely no evidence to show that any of the accused contributed any share capital or received profit from these firms. Receipt of share of the profits is a prima-facie evidence of partnership. But in the instant case, there is absolutely no evidence to show that during the check period, any of the partners received any share of the profits or contributed capit ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... dent on A-1 for their living. Each one of the accused claims to have independent business and independent source of living. They have even gone to the extent of asserting that their assets are purchased out of their own means and resources. Then, what made them to live with A-1 when each of them have separate family has not been explained. Admittedly, A-2 is married and has her own residence. A-1 has claimed that mementos and other gifts received by her are kept by her in the house of A-2 indicating that there was more than ordinary relationship between A-1 and A-2. The very fact, A-2 to A-4 have engaged themselves in constituting firms and acquiring large tracts of land out of the funds provided by A-1 indicate that, all the accused congregated in the house of A-1 not for social living nor A-1 allowed them free accommodation out of humanitarian concern, rather the facts and circumstances proved in evidence undoubtedly point out that A-2 to A-4 were accommodated in the house of A-1 pursuant to the criminal conspiracy hatched by them to hold the assets of A-1. v) It is vehemently argued that, A-1 has nothing to do with the firms established by A-2 to A-4 and she has been falsely i ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rsonal interest even though all these properties were undervalued. It is also shocking to note that, he even registered six documents without the names of the purchasers being entered in the documents, which indicate that the Sub-Registrar was also aware of the purpose and design of the accused. It can be presumed that, the District Registrar obliged to tour the entire district and register the properties at the residence of the purchasers, only to oblige A-1 and to assist her in the acquisition of huge properties. 100. Thus, the prosecution having proved beyond reasonable doubt the intention and object of A-2 to A-4 to acquire and hold the properties for and on behalf of A-1, I hold that A-2 to A-4 are liable for conviction for the offence u/Sec. 109 and 120-B of I.P.C. R/w. Sec. 13(1)(e) R/w. Sec. 13(2) of P.C. Act. To sum up, the prosecution has proved beyond reasonable doubt the following facts constituting the offences charged against the accused viz., I Total assets found in possession of A-1 as on 30.04.1996 Rs. 55,02,48,215.00 II Total expenditure incurred by the accused during the check period Rs. 8,49,06,833.00 III Total of (I) and (II) Rs. 63,51,55,048.00 IV ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Natarajan, A-3 Tr. V.N. Sudhakaran and A-4 Tmt. J. Elavarasi are sentenced to undergo simple imprisonment for a period of four years each and to pay fine of Rs. 10 crores each. In default to pay the fine amount, A-2, A-3 and A-4 shall each undergo further imprisonment for one year. For the offence punishable u/Sec. 120-B of I.P.C. R/w. Sec. 13(2) of P.C. Act, A-2, A-3 and A-4 each are sentenced to undergo simple imprisonment for a period of six months and to pay fine of Rs. 10,000/- each. In default to pay the fine amount, A-2, A-3 and A-4 shall each undergo further imprisonment for one month. Substantive sentences of imprisonment shall run concurrently. Period of custody already undergone by the accused shall be given set off u/Sec. 428 of Cr.P.C. It is further ordered that, necessary direction shall be issued to the concerned banks to remit the proceeds of the Fixed Deposits and the cash balance standing to the credit of the respective accused in their bank account and the proceeds thereof shall be appropriated and adjusted towards the fine amounts. If after adjustment, still the fine falls short, the gold and diamond ornaments seized and produced before the Court (after set ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ered to conduct an enquiry and report within two months. She has misunderstood the order of the Court and collected various documents namely Income Tax Department Returns and documents from Banks. She recorded statements of 300 witnesses. These statements cannot be treated as statements recorded under Section 161 of Cr.P.C. She did not file any report. PW. 240 sought for extension of time. Time sought was granted. The said order was challenged vide Crl.M.P. No. 5755/1996 and the petition was dismissed on 4.9.1996 vide Ex. D.10. He further submitted that PW. 241-V.C. Perumal took up investigation. The Government passed an order directing to register a crime. Accordingly, Crime No. 13/1996 was registered for the offences punishable under Section 13(1)(e) read with Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act. Sri L. Nageswar Rao, learned Senior Counsel appearing for the appellant in Crl. A. No. 835/2014 argued as under: He made submissions with regard to benami transactions, i.e. any person on behalf the public servant. The explanation under Section 13(1)(e) of the Prevention of Corruption Act deals with known sources of income received from any lawful source and intimated in ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s on lumpsum basis. This is without any data. The price of marbles and granites would have been ascertained for the check period, i.e. 1991 to 1996, but this has not been done so. He further submitted that in respect of item No. 179 situated at Grape Garden Farm House, Jedimetla, Hyderabad, the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal has valued the property at Rs. 1.50 crore, whereas the Engineers of Public Works Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh, have valued the same at Rs. 6,40,33,901/-. In respect of item No. 181 situated at Door No. 36, Poes Garden, Chennai, including new construction made at No. 36-A, the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal has valued the property at Rs. 2,11,85,400/-, whereas the Engineers of the Public Works Department, Government of Tamil Nadu, have valued the property at Rs. 7,24,98,000/-. He further submitted that scrutiny report is prepared by the Assessment Officer in respect of marbles and granites and the Assessing Officer visited Bombay to collect the value of the marbles and granites and other similar items. He further submitted that in Tamil Nadu, there is a custom to give gifts to political leaders by way of cash, gold, silver articles, etc. Gold is asse ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ry were received prior to 1.7.1991, i.e. prior to check period. This is not the subject matter of this case. He further submits that he relies on the Appellate Court Order, i.e. Ex. P.2145. He further submits that 'Namadhu MGR' started in the year 1989. It is a scheme. It is legally accepted by the Authorities. DMK was formed in the year 1967. All India Anna DMK was formed in the year 1972 by M.G.R. He relies on Exs. D.217 and D.231, assessment for the year 1991-92. He further submits that PW. 181 was appointed by the prosecution to ascertain the valuation of marriage arrangements made at the choultry. He gave him the drawing, choultry measurements and the pandal. He also gave details of expenses of marriage arrangements. DW. 1-Ramkumar is the son of Sri. Shivaji Ganeshan. The party-workers also contributed for the marriage. The bride was the grand daughter of Sri. Shivaji Ganeshan. Notice was issued to A-1 alleging that she has spent Rs. 91 lakh. Explanation was submitted by A-1. It was not accepted by the Assessing Authority. The Appellate Authority accepted the explanation. Evidence of PW. 181 is hearsay. The expenditure of the marriage is highly inflated. The value of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... a compound wall. Ex. P.822 is the estimation report and cost of construction. Nearly 65 rulings were cited by the learned Senior Counsel Sri. L. Nageswara Rao and Sri. B. Kumar appearing for the appellant in Crl. A.835/2014, which are as follows: 1. VARKEY JOSEPH V. STATE OF KERALA reported in 1993(3) SCC 745; 2. JAGAN M. SESHADRI V. STATE OF TAMILNADU reported in (2002)9 SCC 639; 3. RAJARAM V. STATE OF RAJASTAN reported in (2005)5 SCC 272; 4. KUNJU MUHAMMED @ KHUMANI & ANOTHER V. STATE OF KERALA reported in (2004)9 SCC 193; 5. RAHIM KHAN V. KHURSHID AND OTHERS reported in (1974)2 SCC 660; 6. ASHOK TSHERING BHUTIA V. STATE OF SIKKIM reported in (2011)4 SCC 402; 7. DEVARAPALLI LAKSHMINARAYANA REDDY & ORS. V/S.V. NARAYANA REDDY & ORS. reported in (1976)3 SCC 252; 8. P. SIRAJUDDIN, ETC. V. STATE OF MADRAS ETC. reported in (1970)1 SCC 595; 9. LALITA KUMARI V. GOVERNMENT OF UTTAR PRADESH & ORS. reported in (2014)2 SCC 1; 10. BABU RAO CHINCHANASUR V/S. STATE BY LOKAYUKTHA POLICE, BANGALORE URBAN DISTRICT, BANGALORE AND ANOTHER reported in 2013(4) KCCR 3245; 11. H.N.RISHBUD & INDER SINGH V/S. STATE OF DELHI reported in (1955)1 SCR 1150 : AIR 1955 SC 196 : 1955 CRL.L ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... THER reported in 2008 CRL.LJ 2433; 39. LALU PRASAD YADAV & ANOTHER VS. STATE OF BIHAR & ANOTHER reported in 2010 (5) SCC 1; 40. P. SATYANARAYANA MURTHY VS. STATE OF ANDHRA PRADESH reported in 1992 (4) SCC 39; 41. SURAJ MAL VS. STATE (DELHI ADMINISTRATION) reported in 1979 (4) SCC 725; 42. AKIL ALIAS JAVED VS. STATE (NCT OF DELHI) reported in 2013 (7) SCC 124; 43. GURCHARAN SINGH VS. STATE OF HARYANA reported in MANU/PH/0827/1993; 44. DHANESWAR THAKUR VS. STATE OF PATNA reported in MANU/BH/0132/1958; 45. STATE OF H.P. VS. JAI LAL & OTHERS reported in 1999 (7) SCC 280; 46. DAYAL SINGH & OTHERS VS. STATE OF UTTARANCHAL reported in 2012(8) SCC 263; 47. SIDHARTHA VASHISHT ALIAS MANU SHARMA VS. STATE (NCT OF DELHI) reported in 2010 (6) SCC 1; 48. CHAND KAAN & ANOTHER VS. STATE OF UP reported in 1995 (5) SCC 448; 49. ABHAYA SOOD VS. BABU BATUK NATH & OTHERS reported in MANU/UP/2648/2012; 50. BHAGIRATH VS. STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH reported in 1976 (1) SCC 20; 51. RAMESH CHANDEA AGRAWAL VS. REGENCY HOSPITAL reported in 2009 (9) SCC 709; 52. KESHAV DUTT VS. STATE OF HARYANA reported in 2010 (9) SCC 286; 53. M. KRISHNA VS. STATE OF KARNATAKA reported in 1999 (3) S ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 2. Accused No. 2 is a Wealth Tax Assessee in the year 1987-88. She was Income Tax assessee way back in the year 1993. Accused No. 2 was having sufficient income. He has invited the attention of this Court to the depositions of PW. s. 94, 98, 107, 116, 117, 155, 144, 149, 182, 190, 198, 201, 220, 238 and Exs. P46, P61, P241, P.242, P245, P279, P664, P673, P788, P798, P910, P911, P1189, P1207, P1377, P1510, P1903, P1921, P1922, P1940, P2081, P2191, P2208, P2209, P2245, P2264, P2316, and Exs. D220, D218, D239, D254, D261, D272, D273, D290, D297, D300, D305, D371, D376, D377. He has cited the following rulings: 1. OMA @ Omprakash & Another v. State of Tamilnadu reported in 2013(3) SCC 440; 2. State of Tamil Nadu v. J. Jayalalitha reported in 2000(5) SCC 440; 3. Shiv Kumar v. Hukam Chand & Another reported in 1999(7) SCC 467; 4. B. Janakiramaiah Chetty v. A.K. Parthasarathi & Others reported in 2002 CRL.L.J. 4062; 5. Sri. K.V. Shiva Reddy v. State of Karnataka rep. by its Secretary & Others reported in ILR 2005 KAR 4780." Sri T. Sudanthiram, the learned Senior Counsel appearing on behalf of the appellant in Crl. A. Nos. 837/2014 and 838/2014 submits that in respect of six Com ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... . 21/2015 and 22/2015 submits that the notice prior to an order under Section 452 of Cr.P.C. is must. He further submits that even where the accused has participated in the Trial, separate notice and inquiry must be carried out prior to passing an order under Section 452 of Cr.P.C. He further submits that the learned Trial Judge has failed to appreciate that the appellant is a separate legal entity that is distinct from its Directors viz., accused Nos. 3 and 4. The impugned order is vitiated as the appellant, being a separate legal entity having a distinct character ought to have been necessarily arraigned as an accused. The learned Trial Judge has failed to consider the documents pertaining to the appellant had not discussed with respect to the appellant in the impugned order. The appellant was subjected to the proceedings under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, for income escaping assessment. He further submits that after due enquiry, the Income Tax Authority recorded the statement of individual shareholders of the appellant, who have contributed to its share capital and dropped the proceedings and it became final. The Department of Revenue has not preferred any revision. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... RISHNANAND AGNIHOTRI V/S THE STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH reported in 1971 (1) SCC 816; 14. KHALID PARWES V/S. COMPETENT AUTHORITY AND ADMINISTRATIVE & OPPOSITE PARTIES in OJC NO.6466/2013 Learned Special Public Prosecutor, Sri. B.V. Acharya has filed the written arguments on behalf of the State of Karnataka as under: The appeals filed by the appellants are not maintainable in law. According to the law settled by the Supreme Court, the sole prosecuting agency is the State of Karnataka and in the appeals, the Public Prosecutor validly appointed by the State of Karnataka has to be heard. In all the above appeals, very significantly, the State of Karnataka which is the sole prosecuting agency has not been made a party. Omission to implead the State of Karnataka as a party is a fatal defect and as the defect has not been cured even subsequently, aforesaid appeals are liable to be dismissed in limine as not maintainable. Order of conviction cannot be set-aside as claimed by the appellants unless the sole prosecuting agency viz., State of Karnataka is made a party. The prosecution has fixed the check period as 1.7.1991 to 30.4.1996. There is charge of conspiracy against all the four accu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ve effect of all the circumstances so proved and not merely refer to certain circumstances here and there and say that the case has not been proved. It is established that accused Nos. 1 to 4 were residing together in No. 36, Poes Garden, which is the official residence of accused No. 1 That they were residing together, coupled with other circumstances show that they have acted in concert. Admittedly, A1 and A2 are partners in Jaya Publication and Sasi Enterprises. In fact, it is in evidence that most of the registered Sale Deeds have been actually registered at the residence of accused No. 1 by the Registrar who has come to her house for the said purpose. These are some of the significant features of this case. It is also in evidence that neither A2, A3, A4 had any independent source of income to acquire such valuable properties. The status and income of accused No. 1 has been discussed by the Trial Judge in para-95 of the judgment. Similarly, A3 and A4 also did not have independent income earlier to the check period. It is in evidence that A3 is none other than foster son of A1 and he is also a close relative of A2. The relationship between A2 and A4 is also admitted. The trial J ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... fferent person or companies. Hence, the arguments based on Benami Act is liable to be rejected. The accused Nos. 1 and 2 in an attempt to disprove the case of the prosecution have tried to establish that during the check period, Jaya Publications of which they are the partners, they have received interest free deposit to the extent of 13 crores and odd from thousands of subscribers on promise of supply of free copies of the magazine. According to the prosecution, this whole claim is false and in an attempt to substantiate this claim, accused No. 1 and 2 have not only put forward a false case, but have also fabricated evidence. According to the accused, the scheme was formulated in 1990 and that substantial sum was to the extent of over 13 Crores were collected for the assessment year 1992-93, 1993-94, 1994-95. It is very significant to note that during this period, neither accused Nos. 1 and 2 in their individual capacity nor the firm Jaya Publications filed any income tax returns. The returns showing receipt of this interest free deposit are filed before the Income Tax authorities only after the registration of the present case and filing of the charge sheet. In fact, the returns ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nsequent result is at least to the extent of Rs. 13 Crores and odd, the case of the prosecution regarding possession of the disproportionate asset or pecuniary resources finds full corroboration. If on this aspect of the matter, the conclusion arrived at by the trial Court is correct, to the extent of Rs. 13 Crores, the Prosecution evidences gets corroborates from the version of the accused themselves. The expenditure incurred by the accused during the check period was a sum of Rs. 12,00,59,338.76/-. To substantiate the case of the prosecution, 42 witnesses were examined in this regard. The evidence of these witnesses is cogent and consistent and the accused have not been able to elicit much in the cross-examination. One such item of expenditure included a sum of Rs. 6,47,04,222/- which were expenses incurred by accused No. 1 for the purpose of the marriage of her foster son accused No. 3. The special Judge after giving due consideration to the evidence on record has given valid reasons justifying the reduction of this expenses to about Rs. 3 Crores and also taking into consideration various other expenses incurred has arrived at the final value of expenditure of Rs. 8,49,06,833/-. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ed Deposit which are beyond dispute are also to the extent of Rs. 3 Crores and 42 Lakhs and odd. The value of the vehicles as found in column 8 is also to the extent of Rs. 1,29,00,000/-. Thus, in paragraph 87.9, the trial Court has rightly concluded that the prosecution has proved beyond doubt the acquisition of disproportionate assets to the extent of Rs. 55 Crores. The finding recorded by the Trial Court does not suffer from any infirmity and there are no grounds made out for interference by this Court. Dr. Subramanian Swamy, the original complainant, has filed his written arguments as under: A-1 was the Chief Minister of Tamilnadu from 24.6.1991 till 30.9.1996. She along with A-2 to A-3 amassed wealth disproportionate to their known sources of income. Earlier to this, she was a member of Rajya Sabha from April 1984 till 27.1.1989 till 30.1.1991. She was a public servant within the meaning of Section 2(b) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. Crime No. 13/AC/96/HQ was registered for the offences punishable under Sections 13(2) and 13(1)(e) of the Prevention of Corruption Act against A-1 and others. A-1 was the daughter of late Smt. N.R. Sandhya, who was acting in Films d ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ned Firms/Companies. The activities were more in the nature of acquiring lands, machinery, buildings and vehicles which were not production-oriented. No income tax returns were filed by these Firms as expected by law. No assessment for commercial tax has also been done with respect to the businesses of these Firms. They have not filed their returns. A-1 has also not filed her income tax returns for the assessment years 1987-88 till November 1992. When this issue was raised by the complainant, A-1 filed income tax returns for the above periods in November 1992. Subsequent to 1.7.1991, assets in the forms of movable and immovable properties and pecuniary resources like bank deposits, etc. are found acquired not only in the name of A-1 but also in the names of A-2 to A-4 and the Firms floated in their names. A scrutiny of the various bank accounts maintained in the names of A-1 to A-4 and in the names of different Firms disclose that huge credits in cash and cash had been frequently made into various accounts which were not commensurate with the income of the individuals and of the Firms concerned. There were frequent transfers of amount between one account to the others to facilitate ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... after she became the Chief Minister of Tamilnadu. When her position grows, the yield also grows. There is no reason why no such abnormal and unbelievable agricultural income during the past years when she was not the Chief Minister. In fact, she was not in a position to build a Farm House with her own funds. The large scale of corruption engaged by A-1 after she becomes the Chief Minster clearly comes out when one considers her poverty status in 1986 when she had taken a loan of nearly Rs. 4 lakhs from Mr. Ramaswamy Wodeyar, the Liquor Baron, on instructions from the former Chief Minister M.G. Ramachandran to build her Farm House in Hyderabad. She was a debtor in 1986. She took salary of Rs. 1/-. She earned wealth in multi-crores without doing any gainful work. He further states that after A-1 became the Chief Minister, her financial status was not sound. She had an intention of purchasing 1.1378 grounds comprised in R.S. No. 1567 of 63, Plot No. 31-A, Block No. 31, Mylapore Division, adjacent to her house No. 36, Poes Garden, but the land owner was reluctant not to sell the same. The normal market value of 1.1378 grounds in 1991 was more than Rs. 45 Lakhs. But this land was purc ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n agreement to pay the same by A-1 willingly. It does not in any way represent legal vindication of any claims of A-1 and how the income she claimed was earned. He further states that the money flow chart establishes that the ill-gotten money which was deposited by cash into the accounts of the accused persons and the companies floated by them was indeed used by them to purchase the properties and to acquire other assets. The matrix of arguments of A-1 and the grounds adduced are either vague or exaggerated or full of weak or bald assertion without any factual basis and stretches of credibility beyond human credulity as shown in paragraphs-116, 119 and 136 of the grounds of the appeal. Grounds urged in the Crl. A. No. 835/2014 is vague, without merits and devoid of substance. Therefore, he requests to confirm the conviction and the sentence imposed by the trial Court. The written arguments filed by the third party/intervener are as under: Most of the witnesses upto PW. 57 speak about the sale of land to various business persons and accused persons. PW. s. 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68 and 69- speak about sale of various vehicles to the accused persons. PW. 69-R. Raj ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... . 36, Poes Garden, Chennai as address. This is the official residence of Selvi. Jayalalitha. No returns were filed till 1998. PW. 125-Vasudevan, Assessing Officer values the gold and diamond jewelry at Rs. 33,50,043/- marked as MOs. 2 to 608. PW. 159-Rajagopalan, Sub Registrar of North Chennai Registration officer speaks about the registration of documents at the residence of A1 to A4 and registering the documents were done without names of the purchaser and about nonpayment of stamp duty, which are abuse of power. He also speaks that the registration of properties pertaining to other Districts of Tamil Nadu, beyond his jurisdiction were registered in his office at Chennai, by abuse of power. PW. 182-Arunachalam who was working as Chief Manager, Indian Bank, Regional Branch had deposed that A2 and her accessories had account in Abiramapuram Branch when he was working from December 1995. He speaks about how monies were transferred from one account to the other and went into the accounts of various companies. PWs. 185 and 186-A. Premkumar and Chalapathy Rao respectively speak about the services rendered by them for the marriage of V.N. Sudhakaran and that they received cheques signe ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... cused persons set-up various defences and they can be broadly classified under the following headings: a) Marriage Expenses was not properly computed. b) The construction costs were overly inflated and should not be relied upon. c) The companies have a separate existence from that of the accused and their properties should not be considered as that of the accused persons. d) The amounts deposited into the account of Namadhu MGR was that of the proceeds of the Deposit Scheme. e) The Income-tax returns of the accused should be relied upon and accepted by the Criminal Court. f) There is no material for conspiracy." An attempt has been made by the accused persons to show that they had huge income to purchase the properties, by filing inflated income tax returns belatedly and after the charge sheet was filed in the case. The Income-tax returns of the Cheque period 1991 to 1996 was filed after 1997 when the charge sheet in this case was filed. It is apparent on the face of it that the Tax returns were filed as an afterthought to account for the illegitimate assets acquired by the accused persons, hence do not fall with the explanation under Section 13(1)(e) of the P.C. Act. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... iage expenses. If bank account was opened to meet the marriage expenses and all the arrangements were looked after by DW. 1 as contended by the accused, there is no explanation as to why the father of the bride has to pay Rs. 14 Lakhs to PW. 200. The evidence of DW. 1 and the other witnesses examined by the accused in support of their contention that the marriage expenses were met by the bride's family is completely falsified by the declaration made by A-1 in her returns filed before the Income Tax Authorities as per Ex. P2176, wherein she has declared Rs. 29,92,761/- as the amount spent by her towards the marriage. Further, if the marriage expenses were looked after by DW. 1 and he was maintaining the account, there is no explanation by the accused as to how the original receipts and all other connected documents in relation to the marriage expenses were seized from the office of PW. 228 under Ex. P2218. On the other hand, several witnesses examined by the accused have consistently deposed that on hearing the marriage of A-3, they approached A-1 expressing their intention to contribute their might. This evidence once again indicates that the arrangements were made and even th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Ltd. 6) Signora Enterprises. These companies were exclusively under the control and management of A2 to A4. The registration address of most of the companies is 36, Poes Garden, Chennai. The promoters had already resigned in favour of A2 to A4. Except Indo-Doha Pharmaceuticals Company Pvt. Ltd. all other promoters and erstwhile Directors have categorically stated before the Court that, on receipt of the amount invested by them for the formation of companies, they signed the necessary forms and went out of the company and since then, they ceased of any right or interest in the said property. The promoter Directors have categorically stated before the Court that they did not purchase any properties in their names either before or after the formation of the company as long as they were on the Board of Directors. A2 to A4 took over the management of the company without even buying the requisite shares. The illegally amassed wealth running to nearly 3000 acres of land is sparked in these companies. The properties registered in the name of the companies and even dispose them of merely by passing a mere resolution. The intention of the accused in buying over the above companies and ta ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... . 181 who negotiated for the purchase of the properties bent the rules only to help A1. The circumstances brought out in their evidence clearly indicate that they went out of the way to register these properties as instructed by A1 solely to oblige A1. The corporate veil of these companies, have to be pierced since they were used as front for parking illegal funds. The deposits of huge cash clearly reveal the conspiracy of A1, A2, A3 and A4 to amass wealth through illegal means. The 3rd party Intervenor submits that the properties purchased by the accused persons, the money was paid by way of cash or from the accounts held by the accused persons. He further submits that the ill-gotten money which was deposited by cash into the accounts of the accused persons and the companies floated by them was indeed used by them to purchase the properties and acquire other assets. Namadhu MGR deposit scheme is a bogus plea. The defence set up by the accused that Namadhu MGR newspaper floated a deposit scheme and the monies deposited there were the monies of the depositors was a false plea. The auditors examined by the accused did not handle their accounts during the check period and they were ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... . The calculation adduced by the defence witnesses do not tally with the income shown by the prosecution for accused Nos. 1 to 4 and their respective firms. The evidence of defence witnesses for giving money to the firms are not supported by any documentary legal evidence and cannot be accepted as a lawful source of income. Hence, he prays for confirming the sentence and fine imposed by the trial Court to convict the accused Nos. 1 to 4. The brief reply filed on behalf of the appellant to the written arguments filed by Dr. Subramanian Swamy is as under: Allegations against the appellant are borne out in a desperate attempt to tarnish the name of A-1 without any supporting material. The provision of law mentioned is wrong. Factual mistakes have been deliberately made with a view to gain cheap publicity. This shows that if third party opponents who are nurturing a personal animosity against A-1 are permitted this solemn Court proceedings would degenerate into legalized means of wrecking personal vengeance. Namadu MGR is not a Firm. It is a Newspaper run by Jaya Publications. The averments made in paragraph-7 that A-1 as a member of Legislative Assembly acquired and possessed pecun ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e made with an eye for sensationalism. Her agricultural income during check period has been accepted upto the Tribunal level. It is a lie and defamation to allege that the appellant had taken loan from Rs. 4 Lakhs from Ramaswamy Udayar from a Liquor Barron and that too with instruction of Sri M.G. Ramachandran to build a Farm House at Hyderabad. There is no such incident. The complainant has asserted many things in a desperate attempt to somehow implicate A-1. These averments show that the complainant is trying to clutch at a straw. The defence witnesses have given oral evidence supported by documentary evidence. Their evidence is fortified by the decisions of IT authorities upheld up to the Tribunal level in favour of the appellant. The averments made in paragraphs-24 and 25 appear to indicate poor understanding of factual aspects. The compounding was in respect of non-filing of returns for the assessment year 1993-94. The compounding was accepted on 26.11.2014, whereas the appeal was filed in September 2014. Hence, the averments relating to compounding order of Income Tax authorities were made in appeal is a lie. The compounding was with respect to filing of returns in the year ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... solutely expressed. An objective judgment of the evidence reflects the greatness of mind - sans passion and sans prejudice. The reflective attitude of the Judge must be demonstrable from the judgment itself. A judge must avoid all kind of weakness and vacillation. That is the sole test. That is the litmus test. This being the position of a Judge, which is more elevated as the appellate Judge, we are of the considered opinion that there is no justification for rehearing of the appeal as the matter has been heard at length and reserved for verdict. The appellant has submitted his written note of submissions before the trial court and, therefore, we are inclined to permit him to file a written note of submissions within 90 pages before the learned Single Judge/Appellate Judge. The State of Karnataka, which is the prosecuting agency, is granted permission to file written note of submissions within 50 pages. The written submissions be filed latest by 28.4.2015. The written note of submissions filed before the trial court and the High Court along with written note of submissions of State of Karnataka shall be considered by the learned Single Judge and the consideration should be manifest ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ugh any other person on his behalf which are alleged to be not disproportionate. It is for the prosecution to choose the period, having regard to the acquisitive activities of the public servant in amassing wealth, characterize and isolate that period for a special scrutiny. The Government of Andhra Pradesh issued Memo No. 700/SC D/88-4 dated 13.2.1989 for the benefit of the Government servant giving certain guidelines to the Anti Corruption Bureau is entitled to give allowance of a reasonable margin of 20% on the total income of a Government servant while computing disproportionate assets. On the basis of this memorandum of the State Government the High Court of Andhra Pradesh rendered in S. Thiremolaiah v. State of A.P. Inspector of Police II A.C.B., Karnool Range, Karnool, in which the learned Judge has given the benefit of this Government Memo to the appellant therein though the appellant in that case was prosecuted in the year 1983, that is 6 years before the issue of this Memo as in the case on hand. In Agnihotri's case, the Apex Court held since the excess asset was comparatively small, being less than 10% of the total income of Rs. 1,27,715.43/-, it would not be right ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of known source of income. The prosecution cannot be absolved of its liability on the ground that it was not aware of the said income on the facts and circumstances of the case. The Government servant is to satisfactorily account for the disproportionate assets and not to prove his claim with mathematical exactitude (accuracy) beyond all possibility of doubt. One in many might be keeping accounts of expenditure for his satisfaction, but why should he procure and preserve supporting bills and vouchers? These are not government cash to be audited. Besides why should one keep them from the beginning of his career till his superannuation anticipating, to be required in a Court of Law? Even for certain expenditure supporting vouchers are not feasible for which audit accepts a flat rate. (Hemanta Kumar Mohanty v. State of Orissa, 1973(1) SLR 1121). Fanciful claims, unreasonable apprehensions, vague possibilities cannot be hiding ground for accused persons. He is bound to answer where there is no clear tendency to criminate. (Nandini Satpathy v. P.L. Dani - AIR 1978 SC 1025) The provision contained in Section 5(1)(e) is a self-contained provision. First part of the Section cast a burd ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... has to be added as an income in the Statement of Account of the accused. (emphasis supplied) It is well settled that the burden of showing that a particular transaction is benami and the owner is not the real owner always rests on the person asserting it to be so and this burden has to be strictly discharged by adducing legal evidence of a definite character which would either directly prove the fact of benami or establish circumstances unerringly and reasonably raising an inference of that fact. The essence of benami is the intention of the parties and not unoften, such intention is shrouded in a thick veil, which cannot be easily pierced through. But such difficulties do not relieve the person asserting the transaction to be benami of the serious onus that rests on him nor justify the acceptance of mere conjectures or surmises as a substitute for proof. This evidence, the learned Judge has rejected on imaginary and flimsy ground. It was for the prosecution to prove beyond reasonable doubt and by means of legal evidence that these were Benami properties of accused No. 1. Accused No. 4 had no personal source of income. Accused No. 4 was the nephew of the Appellant and, therefore ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... used therein connotes that the facts must be in their nature be such as could be within the knowledge of the Accused and possibly no one else. Section 106 cannot come into play where the facts concerned are such as capable of being known by others. If it were possible by due diligence and proper investigation to find out the facts even though it may be very difficult to do so, it cannot relieve the prosecution from obligation of establishing the ingredients of the offence alleged. This section cannot be used to shift the onus of establishing an essential ingredient of the offence on Accused. General burden of proof of guilt which lies on the prosecution or on authority in the position of prosecution never shifts - Prosecution cannot rely on section 106 except in very exceptional cases and to a very limited extent. Section 106 cannot be pressed into service to relieve the prosecution of its burden of proving the criminal charge though the burden of proving a plea specifically set up by an Accused, which may absolve him from criminal liability, certainly lies upon him, but the quantum of evidence by which he may succeed in discharging his burden of creating a reasonable belief, that ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... xplained which the Jury think the Accused could explain, they not only may, but must find him guilty. If the knowledge of certain facts is as much available to the prosecution on exercise of due diligence as to the Accused, the facts cannot be said to be within the knowledge of the Accused. Section 106 is intended to meet certain exceptional cases in which it would be impossible or extremely difficult for the prosecution to prove the facts which is especially within the knowledge of the Accused and knowledge of that fact is not available to the prosecution. However, section 106 cannot be utilized to cast the burden on the Accused to prove his innocence to relieve the prosecution of its burden of proof. It is only in cases where the facts proved by the evidence give rise to a reasonable inference of guilt unless the same is rebutted such inference can be negatived by proof of some facts which in its nature can only be within the special knowledge of the Accused. Section 106 is designed to meet certain exceptional cases in which it would be impossible or at any rate proportionately difficult for the prosecution to establish the facts which are especially within the knowledge of the A ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... R 1977 SC 666 : 1975 [4] SCC 761]. The burden to prove requisite to raise a presumption under section 5[3] of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947, lies on the prosecution that he money standing in the name of his wife in a bank is a benami asset of the Accused. AIR 1977 SC 796. Once a requisite proof to convict a public servant for having committed criminal misconduct under section 5[2] read with section 5[1][e] of Prevention of Corruption Act has to be placed on record, held, the burden to account for disproportionate assets possessed by him shifts on to the Accused. However, he need not prove it beyond reasonable doubt. He has only to establish his defence by preponderance of probabilities. AIR 1981 SC 1186. There has been a legal evidence for hearing a finding of fact. At least the witness must say that he has personal knowledge about the facts about which he is giving evidence. If the witness has no personal knowledge or any means of such knowledge about the facts deposed by him, his testimony would not be evidence under any principle of law. [1969 [71] Punjab Law Reports 68]. The evidence of the contents contained in the document is hearsay evidence unless the writer th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ing the responsibility of the owner or client. Soft Costs: These are cost items added to the direct construction cost - they include architectural and engineering fees, legal permits and fees, financing fees, construction interest and operating expenses, leasing and real estate commissions, advertising and promotion, and supervision costs. Square Feet includes rate of Earth work, masoning labour work, plinth, concrete, RCC Sajjas, Hattas, wood works, plastering, flooring, cooking platform, water supply, sanitary, electrical work, painting and distemper work, painting for all wood work, cost of plinth area. Extra work will have to be borne by the owner i.e. electricity deposits, sanitary, water connection deposits etc. Extra work normally involves earth work, parking staircase, grill work. Cladding of tiles normally contractor will charge the rates for tiles. Difference has to be borne by the owner in case laying of marbles and granites and also labour costs. No prudent man will pay the cost of PW. D rates for construction. PW. D rates include delay in payment, miscellaneous expenditure of the contractor and also interest on the borrowed amount if any by the contractor. Therefor ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Corruptionby politicians holding high posts such as ministers, MPs, MLAs is a common knowledge, figuring in media and other fora on regular basis. Several cases relating to corruption or possession of disproportionate assets have been registered recently against politicians holding high posts. Who has not heard of Hawala and Bofors today? Even a former Prime Minister is involved in a case of corruption of offering bribes to some MPs. Cases of disproportionate assets have been registered against former Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu, Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh, Bihar etc. The list is unending. And yet, there definitely are innumerable other cases of corruption by politicians which could never see the light of the day. MPs and MLAs have now been confirmed to be public servants in the recent judgment of the Supreme Court in the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha case, implying that they are amenable to the offences defined in the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. One major offence defined in this Act relates to the possession of assets by a public servant which are disproportionate to his known sources of income. This generally results from the acceptance of bribes over a long period of time as ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s is that if a public servant has acquired any assets in a surreptitious manner without intimating to his superiors even though required under the rules, then any income generated from such property will not be considered in his favour in view of the aforesaid definition of the known sources of income requiring intimation thereof. It thus helps immensely in successfully making out a case of disproportionate assets. The requirement of timely intimations about the financial transactions debars a public servant from claiming any new or undisclosed source of income at a subsequent stage of investigation or trial of a case of disproportionate assets. It is ironical that no such rules exist for ministers, MPs, MLAs or other elected representatives who are public servants now, when almost all other categories of public servants are subject to such rules. There have been some voluntary efforts by some politicians in this direction, e.g., the present Prime Minister asking all ministers and Member of Parliament of his party to file statements of assets owned by them and their spouses. However, such efforts are not sufficient for the simple reason that they are voluntary, individual, unorgan ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... h requirements with provisions for punitive action in case of non-compliance." It may be agreed that such requirements will place unnecessary fetters or cause unnecessary inconvenience to politicians as many of them are businessmen or professionals, already having huge assets or sources of income and that such detailed reporting may not be practicable. Nevertheless, people of this country do deserve to know about the assets of those who have themselves chosen to be in public life and who would be governing them. Those who chose to be in public service owe at least this much to the people of this country. Transparency about the assets of those holding high public offices may be useful at least for forming public opinion, if not for the proof of cases of disproportionate assets against the erring ones. And, who knows, it may go a long way in curbing corruption in public life whose tentacles are all pervasive in all walks of life in the country today. * The All India Services (Conduct) Rule 1968 (Page No. 186): 10. Subscriptions.-No member of the Service shall, except with the previous sanction of the Government or of such authority as may be empowered by it in his behalf ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... elow: (i) A member of the Service should submit a report to the Government while taking an insurance policy if the annual premium of it exceeds Rs. 15,000/-. However, if the annual premium first determined is less than Rs. 15,000/- but on conversion, it exceeds Rs. 15,000/- a report to the Government is necessary at the stage. When he receives the sum assured as survival benefit/on maturity of the policy he need not submit any report to the Government. (ii) A member of the Service need not report to the Government while taking an insurance policy annual premium of which is less than Rs. 2,000/-. He should however, submit a report to the Government as the time of receiving the sum assured as survival benefit/on maturity of the policy." 4. As regards (c) while fixed deposits in a bank or deposits in a Savings Bank account made by a member of the service from out of his salary or accumulated savings would not come within the scope of sub-rule(2), it would be necessary for the member of the service to report to the Government all purchase of Postal or National Savings Certificates exceeding 15 Rs. 2,000 in value, from such accumulated Savings. Service Law Dictionary (Page No. 24 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ccount for these assets also. In this context the prosecution could prove that what is being held by another person is in fact being held on behalf of public servant i.e. he is the real source of that financial or pecuniary acquisition by the other persons. Mere declaration in income tax return of the other person when the income tax officer does not challenge the source of pecuniary resources could itself hardly provide a defence, at least the prosecution is free to prove that these resources were held for the accused and he was the real source of acquisition of those assets. The prosecution cannot be debarred from proving those facts merely on the ground that the other persons declared those assets in his income tax returns. There is no such interpretation of the law. VALUATION OF BUILDINGS: The Learned Senior Counsel for the Appellant submits that the valuation made by the Engineers of the PW. D Department is highly inflated. The rate of OTIS Lift was checked in the spencers. He further submits that the cost of the marbles and granites are assessed at a very exorbitant value. The Engineers of the PW. D, Government of Tamil Nadu have not taken the sample marble and granites an ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... quare feet. 3. M/s. Pacific Marbles- summons u/s. 131 was issued to the sales executive Mr. Raghu Suhalka. In response to the summons, he has furnished the quotation as on 08.12.1998, which shows that the different qualities of rough marble slabs varied between Rs. 90/- to Rs. 150/- per sq.ft. In respect of the rates prevailed during the financial years 1994-95 to 1996-97 he has informed me that the rates and the invoices raised to few clients will be forwarded to me in a week's time. Since, they were all at the head office at Udaipur. 4. Elegant Marbles and Grani Industries Ltd-summons was issued to Mr. Rakesh Agarwal, Director. He has furnished certain invoices raised to the clients during April, June and September 1996. Which reveal that the rate varies between Rs. 100/- to Rs. 130/- per sq.ft. In respect of the unsigned quotation shown to him he has informed me that he has not issued this quotation. The copies of the quotations given by the above concerns are enclosed for ready reference. Yours faithfully, (Dr. B. Senthil Kumar) Deputy Commissioner of Income tax, Central Circle II (2), Chennai. Copy to: The joint Commissioner of Income tax, Central-II, Chennai. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ding Division-4, PW. D, in the year 1996. He inspected the building along with the team in building No. 21, Padmanabha Street, T. Nagar. First floor had an area of 158.49 sq. meters. Second Floor had area of 12.49 sq. meters. Another Room plus toilet had area of 8.63 sq. meters. He has further deposed that he inspected a house at Nos. 149, 150, Sriramnagar, T.T.K. Road, Chennai. It was an unfinished building. Basement area is 390.67 sq. meters. Ground floor is 486.79 sq. meters. First floor is 266.17 sq. meters. Plan was sanctioned in the year 1995. Construction was stopped about six months prior to inspection. He has further deposed that he took the measurement for purpose of valuation of four buildings located at Nos. 1/240, New Mahabalipuram Road, Enjambakkam. Marble slabs, Door frames and window frames were kept. He has further deposed that two buildings located at 2/1, B-3, Seashell Avenue, Sholinganallur village. The total area 602.92 sq. meters. He has further deposed that Second Building total area - is 705.71 sq. meters. Team inspected building at No. 19, Pattammal Street, Mylapore, Chennai. They considered only renovation work for valuation. Building basement area - ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of ground floor - 5 houses and 1st floor - 5 houses built in 1994-95. 3) 2nd workers quarters consisting of 10 houses in ground floor and 10 houses in I floor and a guesthouse on the first floor and the platforms. Besides, they prepared the assessment for the compound wall build in 8 houses for the workers and a residential bungalow for the Managing Directors. The construction cost is as under: Construction Cost: The direct contractor costs of labour, material, equipment and services, contractor's overhead and profit. Construction cost may not include the fees paid to the architect and engineer and other consultants, the cost of the land, rights of way, financing cost or other costs which are defined in the contract documents as being the responsibility of the owner or client. Soft Costs: These are cost items added to the direct construction cost - they include architectural and engineering fees, legal permits and fees, financing fees, construction interest and operating expenses, leasing and real estate commissions, advertising and promotion, and supervision costs. Ex. P.645 is the proforma accompanying the valuation report. Year of construction is 1995-96, new building ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... as extra work in so far as staircase, flagging concrete, sump, pump, grill work. The Public Works Department will have cost included for delay payment and other miscellaneous expenses. No prudent owner will agree for construction of a building adopting the PW. D rates. The PW. D rates are reasonably high when compared to the rate charged by the contractor when he constructs a building adopting the method of square rate. The total area constructed by the Accused Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, firms, companies is as under: Sl.No Description of Property Total Area constructed Related Documents 174 New/Additional Construction in building at 5B & C East Coast Road, Door No.4/130, Raja Nagar, Neelankarai, Chennai-41 (Ref. Doc. No.4752/93 of S.R.O. Adyar) Evaluation Report 14357.22 Sq.Ft. Ex.P673 176 New/Additional construction in Farm House Bungalows at payannur in Chengai Anna District. 14736.76 Sq.Ft. Ex.P662 177 New/Additional Construction building at Door No.48, Jawaharlal Nehru Road, Industrial Estate, Guindy, Ekkatuthangal, Chennai (M/s. Anjaneya Printers (P) Ltd.) 20603.41 Sq.Ft. Ex.P663 178 New/Additional construction in the residential building at D.No.3/178C, Vettuvankeni, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 19 m2 10. Building at 149, 150 TTK Road Ex.P.667 Nil 11. Sy.No.1/240, Enjambakkam building Ex.P.668 Nil 12. Sy.No.2/1, E-3 Apartment, Sholinga Nallur Village Ex.P.669 18.83 m2 10.22 m2 13. Door No.19, Pattaimal Street, Mylapore Chennai Ex.P.670 Nil 14. No.36, Poes Garden Ex.P.671 605.76 m2 33.63 m2 33.60 m2 231.47 m2 39.20 m2 15. Plot No.7, East Coast Road, Door No.4130, Rajanagar, Neelakankai Ex.P.673 111.78 m2 122.98 m2 16. MFT, Guindy Industrial Estate Ex.P.674 8.27 m2 17. Compound wall, security shed, Ex.P.675 29.71 m2 18. Door No.213, St. Mary's Road, Menthavali, Chennai Ex.P.676 Nil 19. S.No.32/2-4, Plot No.7, Ganapathy Colony Road, VK Industrial Estate Guindy Ex.P.677 32.82 m2 20. Ponnagar, Trichy Ex.P.682 109.89 m2 TOTAL 2384.3 m2 25662.22 sq.ft. 1 Square Metre= 10.763 Sq. Ft. 1 Square Feet= 0.093 sq.mtr. 1 Square = 10 x 10 sq. ft. ANNEXURE-IV MARKED THROUGH PW.259 EXPENDITURE INCURRED BETWEEN 1-7-91 AND 30-4-96 TOWARDS SANCTION PLAN & ARCHITECT FEES Sl.No. Details of Expenditure Amount in Rs. 1 Amount Paid to Corporation of Madras towards sanction of building plan in respe ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Tmt. J. Elavarasi 17,305.00 TOTAL 9,65,060.00 In the instant case, total constructed area is 166834.68 sq. feet. Now the question that arises for my consideration is what is the rate that has to be assessed for construction of a square [10 x 10] = 100 sq. feet. As stated earlier, the Public Works Department fixes the rate reasonably at the higher rate taking into consideration of delayed payment and other miscellaneous expenses to the contractor. As stated earlier, as per PW. D itself, the construction cost per square will be Rs. 31,580.19/-. This is reasonably quite higher. The date of construction is during the check period. The construction rate per square may be somewhere around Rs. 28,000/-. In the instant case, Team of Engineers inspected several buildings and they valued the buildings. PW. 107 who is Superintendent Engineer, PW. D, has deposed that there are two methods to find building value, detailed estimate and per square foot are two ways. Though several Engineers have inspected the buildings mentioned in the annexures and the valuation report have been prepared, in some valuation not all the Engineers who inspected the buildings have affixed their ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s. 25,66,200/- 3. Architect fees/sanction plan Extra work charges: Rs. 9,65,060/- 4. Staircase, sump, overhead tank Rs. 40,000/- 5. OTIS Lift Rs. 15,000/- 6. Air Conditioners Rs. 7,54,000/- TOTAL Rs. 5,10,54,060/- MARRIAGE EXPENDITURE: In respect of Marriage Expenses, the following prosecution witnesses were examined, they speak as under: PW. 181 - Thangarajan, Assistant Engineer, Building Construction-3, Sub-division-II, Chennai. The Superintendent of the Anti-Corruption Department entrusted him to estimate the expenses incurred at the wedding and reception of V.N. Sudhakaran, foster son of former Chief Minister Selvi Jayalalitha. He consulted Architect Vijayashankar Art Director Thota Tharani, his assistants Gopinath and Ramesh, B.S. Mani, the Electrician, they went to MRC Nagar, place of wedding and saw the place of reception, then to the film city J.J. Nagar, at present it is renamed as MGR Film City. He submitted estimate report. Architect Vijayshankar gave him the drawing of the wedding choultry and the measurement of the pandal. Thota Tharani gave only the sketch for decorative arches, work was done by his Assistant -Ramesh. He came to know the measu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Other than that, there was no connection between him and the sketch. Nobody has sent him an invitation for the wedding. He has not attended the wedding. He does not know personally whether reception Hall, wedding pandal and decorative arches were there. For the preparation of the report, whatever is heard and seen from the sketches, he has prepared the report. He does not know personally whether the details of the drawing were correctly followed. In this sketch, nothing about decorative arches is mentioned. Thota Tharani is one of the best Art Directors in India. The handwritten material of Thota Tharani was not attached to his report. He has prepared the report based on ten categories under the heading of General Discussion. He had been to MRC Nagar. When he went there, it was a vacant land. He did not see the marriage choultry mentioned in item No. 1 in his report. The second item i.e. mainpandal was also not there. The third item - pandalpark, common dining with kitchen set was also not there. The fourth item pertains to VIP dining with kitchenset was not there. He did not see the item written under the headings Arches, Stages, Pillars, Cut-outs from Adyar Signal to MRC Nagar an ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ate report. He came to know about this pillar, only when he spoke to others. No sketches were made to describe the models. In his estimate report, he has not mentioned that there were three types of pillars. He did not enquire any General Public regarding the place where the cut-outs were fixed. He does not know from where the decorative lamps, Halogen lamps, tube-lights, generator, mobile generator were taken on rent. In his report, he has mentioned the capacity level of the mobile generator. He has not seen the Account Registers with regard to the amount remitted to the Chennai Corporation. In his report, he has mentioned that 20,86,000 units of electricity had been consumed. But he had not indexed it. Nobody has to pay the electricity charges using the generator. He has not mentioned in his report that how much electricity has been consumed from the generator and through the electricity board. He does not know how much money has been remitted to the electricity board. In the sketch attached to his report, no mention was made about the Marriage Mantap. In the drawing, no mention was made about the artificial grass lawn and the Korean grass. In his report, at page No. 35 of the te ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... type of flower pots and the area of Korean Grass. He has not mentioned in his report whether Banana trees were planted. He has not prepared any estimate report in connection with wedding. He has not constructed any artificial fountain. He has not mentioned about the pressure and the capacity of the artificial fountain. He has not mentioned in his report the horse power of the machinery. He did not consult the Horticultural officer at Tharamani regarding the preparation of estimate report. He has not mentioned in his report what the unforeseen item No. 1. Chair needs an area around 4 1/2 sq.ft. one cannot sit by putting a chair in lesser area than that. If it is a VIP chair, then they need atleast 6 sq.ft. To put VIP chairs, 15,000 sq.ft. space is required and for ordinary chairs, 4500 sq.ft. space is required. For the chairs at the main pandal, 60,000 sq.ft. space is required. 672 sq.ft. is the length and 70 ft. is the width of the main pandal. The floor area was 2,35,200 sq.ft. In the abstract, it is mentioned as plywood false ceiling. In his report, he has mentioned the information as false ceiling. Carpets are of two types. One is cloth and the other is coir. He did not mention ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... is not there in his report. He has not given any break-up figures and did not collect any evidence to show Rs. 375/- is the amount per sq.ft. in his report. The items mentioned in his estimate report at page 21 of item No. 3 is the estimate of the basic items they brought on their own and manufactured pipe, fittings, asbestos cement sheets, steel stressors, doors, aluminium doors as such might have been rented. He did not mention which company AC was used. He did not mention in his report the measurement of coir mat used for the main pandal. He did not mention in his report about the rent of coir mat. It was not possible to find out who prepared the food for that wedding. He could not find out who did the video coverage. Depending on the type of chairs, its rent differs. Stage mentioned in his report includes the rooms of the bride and the bridegroom. In his report, he has not given the break up details of a material and its value estimate. No individual labour charges were mentioned for anything. He did not mention in his report how much thickness of thermocoal has been used. The price differs from brand to brand. He enquired and found out the sand rate as Rs. 124/- per cubic feet ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... was this way. He did not mention in his report the expenses for shaping those flowers. He did not mention water supply charges, labour charges, plumber charges. In his report, he has not mentioned that how much quantity of jelly, tar have been used, water tank, length, width and height of the wall, nature of roof, septic tank, door ventilator, its quality and labour charges. In the J.J. Film City abstract, he has mentioned item Nos. 1(A) - pandal and dining pandal, 1(C) - kitchen pandal, false ceiling, G.I. sheet covering the kitchen, Khora mat, red carpet for dining hall, wall banner for dining hall, rent for the chairs, rose wood chairs, plastic chairs, banquet chairs, plastic holder chairs, table cloth, buffet cloth. He did not mention the material with which the pandal was made, thickness of the pillars, rental charges of G.I. sheet, length and width of kitchen pandal, square beams, type of wood, reapers, glittering paper, ventilators, grass mat. In his report, he did not mention that as to which the contractor erected the pandal, whether the carpets were rented or not. He has not explained in his report what is meant by rose-wood cushion chair or banquet chair. He did not m ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s. 4/- for each invitation. Its total cost was about Rs. 2,24,000/-. He has received amount from Jawahar Babu, Joint Secretary of the former Chief Minister. 56,000 invitations were sent by his Assistants namely, Ramesh, Sukumar, Krishna Murthy, Mani and others. He did not sign the vouchers for having received any amount. He does not have any documents to show whether invitations were sent by Certificate of Posting or by Registered Post. Accused No. 2 and accused No. 4 did not give money to him. PW. 191 - V. Srinivasan is a musical instrument Mandolin player. Mr. Jawahar asked him over phone that not to accept any other appointments on the day of marriage of Sudhakaran. He went to marriage reception which was held at film city, Cinema Nagar, Egomore, Chennai and conducted the Mandolin Orchestra. When they asked him about the money, he refused to take the money, as it was Chief Minister's function. They gave him a silver plate, silk saree and a small kumkum box. When he was enquired by the police, he handed over the above mentioned things to the police. The police have taken the silver plate, small kumkum box and silk saree from him in the year 1997. Mahazar was not drawn at tha ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Natarajan. The wedding reception was held in Cinema Nagar, Chennai on 10.09.1995. For that the pandal work was done by Kumareshan Nadar. The decoration work was done by a North Indian by name Paulbabu. For this Rs. 1.50 Lakhs was sent from Poes Garden. The carpenter's wages, cost of plywood nails and reaper were paid by him and he gave the vouchers for that. For this function, 6 connections were taken from the Electricity Board. From Adyar Vinayagam temple to MRC Nagar, the paths were decorated with decorative lights by R. Subramani and G.M. Samy by using the temporary electrical connections. He gave Rs. 3,54,000/- and odd to Mr. Subramanyam and Rs. 4,89,000/- and odd to G.M. Samy. He presented the accounts to Mr. Ramkumar and handed over the remaining amount of Rs. 4,422/- to him. When he was supervising the work in MRC Nagar, one person came and gave him the marriage invitation with a silver plate, a silk saree, silk dhoti and silk angavastram. During investigation, he handed over all these things to the Anti-Corruption police. M.O. 1594 is the silver plate given with the invitation, M.O. 1595 is the silk dhoti, M.O. 1596 is the silk angavastram and M.O. 1597 is the silk sare ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ination, he states that the bride is the actor Shivaji Ganeshan's grand daughter. He received payment in cash from Shivaji Films. PW. 228 - R. Rajasekaran speaks about the expenditure of the marriage. He has deposed that 38th item of Ex. P2218 contains 928 pages of Sudhakaran's marriage expenditure. Bills and Receipts are at Ex. P2220. Ex. P2220 is the letter written by Assistant Director of Income-tax (Inv.), Unit-IV, Madras-34, which reads as under: GOVERNMENT OF INDIA OFFICE OF THE ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF INCOME TAX (INVESTIGATION) UNIT IV (4) 108, Mahatma Gandhi Road, Madras-600 034 Date: 19.09.95 To, Miss. J. Jayalalitha, 36, Poes Garden, Madras-86. Madam, In connection with the recent marriage celebrations of your foster son Shri V.N. Sudhagaran, you are requested to furnish the following details:-- (1) The charges paid/payable for the use of the land at M.R.C. Nagar in which the marriage was celebrated together with the name and address of the person to whom such charges are payable/paid. (2) Expenditure incurred on the 'Pandal' at the marriage site and details of payments made for this purpose to the contractors together with their nam ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... arches, statues, pillars, decorative dais, banners etc. (21) Details of gifts received on the occasion of the marriage together with the details of persons who made such gifts. (22) Details of any other expenditure incurred in connection with the marriage. (23) Details of expenditure incurred in connection with the betrothal function in June 1995. While giving the details of the payments made in respect of the various to whom such payments were made, the date(s) on which the payments were made and the mode of payment i.e., by cash, cheque/draft may be specified. The aforesaid information is called for under section 133A(5) of the Income Tax Act, 1961. Details called for may kindly be furnished by 29.09.1995. Yours faithfully, (T. SASIKALA) Asst. Director if Income Tax (Inv) Unit-IV(4), Madras-34 The reply given by A-1 to the above said letter reads as under: To, The Asst. Director off Income-Tax (Invn.) Unit IV (4), 108, Mahatma Gandhi Road, Madras-600 034 Madam, Sub: Furnishing of Details required by your letter dated 19.9.1995-Reg. The details required by you are furnished seriatim: 1) No charge has been paid or is payable for the use of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ; Rs. 78,430 ------------ 12) Jewellery Marriage 13) Expenditure on the dresses, clothes and other textiles items for the marriage amounted to Rs. 4,84,712/- paid to Kumaran Silks, Madras-17 by my canara Bank cheque No. 090993. 14) Expenses on Video Coverage etc., were incurred by the bride's family and Mrs. N Sasikala. The Photograph expenses from my side amounted to Rs. 54,660/- and paid to Balu's colour labs, Madras-4 by cheque No. 597114 drawn on Canara Bank, Mylapore. 15) Expenses relating to the horse-drawn carriage used at the time of Mappillai Azhaippu were incurred by the bride's family. 16) Expenses on fireworks and crackers were met by the bride's family and my AIADMK party men. 17) 18) There was no purchase of any furniture for the marriage. The furniture hire charges for the marriage were borne by the bride's family. The furniture hire charges for the reception on the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 00 Pandal at the entrance of the residence 27,256.00 Thanks Advertisements 2,47,616.00 Rent and amenities for the Film City 49,500.00 Rice in respect of food for reception 23,800.00 Total 28,67,520.00 PW. 237 - S.S. Jawahar was working as Assistant Secretary to the Chief Minister. Accused Nos. 2 and 3 were staying in Chief Minister's House. Mr. Sudhakaran's marriage took place in the year 1995. Grand daughter of Shivaji Ganeshan was engaged to get married to him. Marriage reception, musical concerts of Mandolin Srinivas and A.R. Rahman was conducted. Moulis Agencies Company printed the wedding invitations. He pasted the slip of address of 400 VIPs on the invitations who were Chief Ministers of many States. Many cooks came from Thanjavur to cook food for the marriage. He has seen 4th Accused Ilavarasi in poes garden. In respect of Marriage Expenses, the following defence witnesses were examined, they speak as under: DW. 1 - Ramkumar has deposed that his father's name is Shivaji Ganesan. The third Accused is his elder sister Shanthi's Son-in-law. On 7.9.1995, his elder sister daughter Sathyalakshmi married to the third Accused in MRC Nagar, Chenna ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of AIADMK Party. In 1995, he was the District Secretary of Thanjavur, District Unit of AIADMK Party. He has deposed that he along with others arranged procuring rice and vegetables. He arranged two cooks. Plantation leaves grown in his land were supplied for the above occasion. Subramanyam, Paramashivam and Dandayudapani were three others involved in procuring rice and vegetables. Jayaraman and Shankar are the two cooks who prepared food items. He paid Rs. 17,000/- each. He has given statement before the Income Tax Officer. Breakfast was arranged by the bride's side. DW. 26 - Kanchi Pannerselvam has deposed that they were told marriage pandal would be put up by bride side. They decided to put the facade of the marriage pandal. The actual cost of execution of the package is Rs. 57,02,050/-. He gave list of persons who contributed money for execution of the work. DW. 27 - Rathinavel has deposed that he along with 11 others arranged the facade of marriage pandal. Work was done by Ramesh. He paid Rs. 5 lakhs. Said amount was collected from party workers in the District. He prepared list of persons who contributed money for the above works along with their names and addresses. Th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rsons who made the contributions to the tune of Rs. 50,000/-. The said collections made were handed over to K.R.V. Ramani about 15 to 20 days prior to the marriage of A3. DW. 42 - P.S. Annamalai has deposed that he is a member of AIADMK Party which was formed in the year 1972 by late M.G. Ramachandran. He agreed to collect Rs. 2,00,000/- towards arrangements to be made to receive A1 on the occasion of the above marriage in that area. The procession was decorated in that area. In this connection, he received a Notice from Income Tax Department enquiring him about the said Rs. 2,00,000/-. He sent reply to that notice. Nobody asked them to make the above arrangements. As a member holding responsible position in the party, he felt that it was his duty to make such arrangements during visits by A1. He did not prepare the list of contributors from whom contributions were collected by him. He did not issue any receipts to those contributors. DW. 43 -V. Kothandaraman has deposed that MRC Nagar is situated in Mylapur Legislative Constituency. KRV Ramani was the AIADMK's Party's Secretary for Mylapur Constituency. The secretary of the above area was responsible to oversee the decor ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Jawahar. PW. 191 - Srinivasan has deposed that he declined to take money for the music concert. PW. 196 - Aijaz Ahamed has deposed that he stitched the apparels of V.N. Sudhakaran and has received a sum of Rs. 1,41,025/- from DW. 1 - Ramkumar for stitching charges. PW. 200 - K.P. Muthuswamy, Retired Chief Engineer has deposed that Vijayashankar, Architect furnished him a plan for pandal and stage arrangements. Contractors carried-out the work. Bride's father Mr. Narayanaswamy gave him a total sum of Rs. 16,00,000/-. DW. 1 gave Rs. 3,00,000/- to Gopinath Rs. 1,75,000/- to Pauldasan and Rs. 10,000/- to K.V. Natarajan. PW. 214 - A.R. Rahman has deposed that he has performed music programme without charging any amount. PW. 224 - Thyagaraja Swami has deposed that he cooked food for VIPs during marriage. A person from Shivaji Films gave Rs. 11,850/- towards cooking charges. PW. 228 - Rajasekaran speaks about expenditure of marriage. The Income-tax department has sent a questionnaire to A-1 - Selvi Jayalalitha. She replied for the same. According to her computation towards marriage, she has stated in her reply that she has spent about Rs. 28,67,520/-. PW. 237 - Jawahar was the Assista ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... eneral Secretary of All India Anna DMK Party. Her role was in dual capacity. Bride was none other than the grand daughter of the famous Cine Actor Shivaji Ganesan. DW. 1- Ramkumar has stated in his evidence that he has spent about Rs. 92,00,000/- for the performance of the marriage. He was also produced the extract of SB Account No. 95071, State Bank of India, Gopalpuram Branch. The material witness - the father of the bride, Narayanaswamy has not been examined. He was a proper person to speak about the marriage expenses of his daughter. The prosecution has not been examined him. No plausible explanation is forthcoming as to why he was not examined. He was working as a Professor in Indian Institute of Technology, Chennai. The material evidence has been withheld by the prosecution. The prosecution's case is that accused No. 1 has spent all the expenses pertaining to marriage. The version of accused No. 1 is that she has spent about Rs. 28,67,520/- for the marriage. It is a customary practice that normally expenses of the marriage will be borne by the bride's family. Even the bride's family are also financially sound. The expenditure relating to marriage will be of both v ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... gilance and Anti Corruption registered a crime in Tamil Nadu during the course of the trial which was conducted in Tamil Nadu. At that stage, this matter was transferred from the High Court judicature of Madras to the High Court of Karnataka so that trial of the case may be conducted fairly. Since this criminal case was transferred from Tamil Nadu, the transferee State is the party. That being the case, as soon as criminal case was disposed of by the learned Special Judge, criminal appeals were preferred by the Accused before this Court. At that time, only State of Karnataka should have been diligent in appointing Special Public Prosecutor, but it has not done so. Even at the stage of hearing of the appeal for nearly four months, State of Karnataka has not taken steps to appoint Special Public Prosecutor to conduct the proceedings. On the other hand, contention of the State of Karnataka is that they are not made as parties. There was an observation by this Court for the appearance of the learned Advocate General. Accordingly, he appeared before the Court and made submission that he will give accommodation to the Special Public Prosecutor Sri. Bhavani Singh. Even during that time, t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the extent of Rs. 3 Crores. This court after examining evidence and also documents has come to the conclusion that Accused No. 1 cannot be saddled with the entire marriage expenses. As stated earlier, according to Hindu Customs, it is bride's father and their family members who perform the marriage and they bear the marriage expenses. Besides, there will be non verifiable expenditure. Such being the case, it is difficult to accept submission of learned Senior Counsel in this aspect. Though it is contended by learned Senior Counsel that income of Accused is Rs. 9,34,26,053.56/-, but from the evidence available and material on record, it is crystal clear that Accused Nos. 1 to 4, firms and companies have borrowed loans to the tune of Rs. 24,17,31,274/-. Such being the case, this amount has lost sight of by the prosecution. The Investigating Agency has also not investigated in this regard. It appears that the Investigating Agency has deliberately omitted to investigate in this aspect and narrate the same in the police papers. Therefore, the contention of learned Senior Counsel for the State with regard to the income of the Accused has no force and the same cannot be accepted. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... and companies have borrowed huge loans. Even I have carefully examined the documents and it is found that evidence of one PW. 182 - Arunachalam reveals that Accused Nos. 1 to 4 and firms and have borrowed Rs. 7,35,46,000/-. Besides, Accused have also borrowed loan from private parties. Those loans have not been taken into consideration. Ex. D196 discloses that Indian Bank has granted loan of Rs. 84,07,172/-. The assessee advanced loan of Rs. 58,66,500/-. The following are loans availed from Accused and firms and companies. Accused No.3 Rs. 29,98,500 J. Farm House Rs. 6,00,000 Meadow Agro Farms Pvt. Ltd. Rs. 2,00,000 Sasi Enterprises Rs. 2,00,000 Bharani Beach Resorts Rs. 41,35,000 Lex Property Development Pvt. Ltd., from Kalyani Constructions Rs. 1,57,00,000 Indo Doha Company was advanced loan of Rs. 1 Crore from Magantha Investments. PW. 211 - P.N. Venkatesh speaks about Rs. 34 lakhs loan to Accused No. 4. PW. 160 speaks about grant loan of Rs. 1.50 Crores sanctioned to Jaya Publications. PW. 176 speaks about grant loan of Rs. 1.50 Crores from Indian Bank to Tansi Enterprises. PW. 182 also speaks about sanction of loan. However, I have considered the loan on ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... orities. Besides, there was a marriage function of foster son of Accused No. 1 and also her birthday. In Tamilnadu, there is practice of giving gifts to political leaders on their birthdays. She has also claimed foreign remittance of Rs. 77 lakhs. Taking into consideration all these aspects, in my view, the income that arises from the gifts in my estimation will be around Rs. 1,50,00,000/-. SASI ENTERPRISES PW. 113 has spoken about the rent derived from the shops given on rent from Sasi Enterprises. Sasi Enterprises carried out fax, Xerox, STD, printing of building plan works. Ex. D258 is attested copy of lease agreement dated 1.9.1991 between Sasi Enterprises and said TSR Vasudevan. In Ex. D261 a sum of Rs. 17,91,000/- is shown as loans and advances due to M/s. Sasi Enterprises. Ex. D261 discloses that a sum of Rs. 8,20,000/- was due from one Nagammal, a sum of Rs. 2,75,000/- was due from one Subramaniam. Sasi Enterprises leased shops bearing Nos. 9 and 20 in Khadar Nawaz Khan Road, Chennai in favour of M/s. Info Tech Computer Centre. Ex. D263 shows agricultural income of M/s. Sasi Enterprises of Rs. 5,40,700/-. Ex. D259 is copy of certificate issued by the Tahsildar of Villu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... f returns along with statement of income, balance sheet and profit and loss account for the year ending on 31.3.95 from M/s. Sasi Enterprises on 20.9.97. In the said statement of income, a sum of Rs. 70,000/- is shown as agricultural income. Net profit shown is shown as Rs. 44,895/-. A sum of Rs. 1,69,600/- is shown as income from house property. Ex. D272 is attested copy of the acknowledgement issued by IT Authorities regarding receipt of returns along with statement of income, balance sheet and profit and loss statement. Statement relating to income of the year 1996-97 includes a sum of Rs. 80,000/- as agricultural income. Gross rental income received is shown as Rs. 7,06,200/-. In the same statement of income, a sum of Rs. 10 lakhs is shown as loan received by the assessee from Housing Real Estate Developers Pvt. Ltd. Ex. D274 is letter of confirmation of accounts issued to Sasi Enterprises by Housing Real Estate Developers Pvt. Ltd., for the period 1.4.97 to 31.3.98. In this document, amount due was Rs. 10 lakhs. In the above statement, a sum of Rs. 6 lakhs is shown as income received by way of sale proceeds of building materials pertaining to Industrial Estate, Guindy. In the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... CATIONS Sl.No. Ass.Yr. Exhibits Printing,Publishing & dealing properties Amount [inRs.] 1 1991-92 Ex.D218 Income tax returns 6,99,350 2 1992-93 Ex.D219 Income tax returns 16,89,680 3 1993-94 Ex.D220 Income tax returns 14,65,660 4 1994-95 Ex.D221 Income tax returns 1,45,34,628 5 1995-96 Ex.D222 Income tax returns 2,34,66,583 TOTAL 4,18,55,901 The above Income Tax returns were accepted. NAMADHU MGR: Namadhu MGR relates to the subscription to receive a periodical or service regularly or order i.e. to subscribe to a newspaper to purchase future issues of periodical, list of contributors, an agreement to take and pay for such periodicals, books containing names of subscription with the amount of this subscription. When you subscribe, there will be some discounts. The subscription schemes are set-up for raising money. The payment or promise of payment for consecutive issues of magazine, newspaper, books etc. over a specified period of time. Namadhu MGR is one of the components of the Jaya Publications. In this background, Namadhu MGR scheme was introduced in the year 1990, to improve the circulation of newspaper i.e. Sub ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d the claim of the assessee. As against this order, further appeal was preferred before the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal - B Bench. The Appellate Tribunal passed common order accepting the claim of the assessee regarding the Deposit Scheme except in respect of 41 depositors. The total amount received by Jaya Publication under the above Deposit Scheme from its subscribers is Rs. 14,23,89,000/-. 16,000 copies of newspapers per day were printed in the year 1998. 30,000 copies of newspapers per day were printed in the year 1990. 60,000 copies of newspapers per day were printed in the year 1995-96. 70,000 copies of newspapers per day were printed in the year 1996-97. During the cross-examination of DW. 88, he states that A-1 and A-2 became partners of M/s. Jaya Publication in the year 1990. A-2 was looking after the affairs of said firms. In between 1990 and 1992, A-1 executed the power of attorney dated 21.5.1992 in favour A-2 for looking after the business of Jaya Publications on her behalf. Jaya Publications did not obtain permission for introducing interest free Subscribers Deposit Scheme in respect of Namadhu MGR newspaper. The said scheme has not been registered with any authori ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 991, which consisted of 91 members from whom an aggregate amount of Rs. 13,54,000/- were collected. The complete details and addresses of these 91 members were already stated to have been filed before the Assessing Officer during the re-assessment proceedings. As regards non-mentioning of the scheme deposit in the impounded books of accounts, the learned Counsel contended that the impounded books, on the basis of which the Assessing Officer concluded this issue, consisted only of pretty cash books of M/s. Jaya Publications and M/s. NAMADHU MGR; whereas the other records like bank which actually reflected the transactions of scheme deposit were not impounded. Thus, in his view, the impounded books in question were incomplete and consequently, the conclusion drawn on the set of incomplete books would not be correct. However, during the re-assessment proceedings, the Appellant had produced the complete books of accounts, as is evident from the findings recorded by the Assessing Officer himself on page 20 of the assessment order, the relevant portion of which reads thus: In the balance sheet filed the amount of scheme deposit collected was claimed to be Rs. 13,54,000/-. From the verifi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... hat the credits found in the impounded cash books were nothing but the sales and advertisements collection of one daily newspaper titled 'Namadhu MGR' but, as already observed, the transactions relating to scheme deposit were actually entered in the bank book, which was also produced before the Assessing Officer, as is evident from his own findings on page 20 of the assessment order. At the cost of repetition, the relevant portion is reproduced again: In the balance sheet filed the amount of scheme deposit collected was claimed to be Rs. 13,54,000/-. From the verification of the computerized bank books submitted it is seen that the credits representing alleged scheme deposit collection aggregate to Rs. 13,11,200/- only. No explanation was given for the difference. A careful reading of this finding shows that the Appellant had produced the relevant books of accounts in support of the revised claim. It is pertinent to mention here that when the Appellant had actually furnished letters from 417 subscribers confirming the deposits made by them, the Assessing Officer should have initiated further investigation process for verifying these deposits transactions, either through sum ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... uch depositors and this would take considerable time. He had seen all the said 9,000 applications of the subscribers of the said scheme. He has not put his initials on the said applications to indicate that to he has verified each of those applications. He denies the suggestion put to him, out of 9,000 applications, more than 5,000 applications were incomplete. In the application bearing Serial No. 144 and Reference No. 207 stated to be that of S. Mada Swamy, now shown to him the place and signature are not visible. He said that this is so on account of passage of time. In the application of one J. Padmanabhan at Sl. No. 109, there is a mention of date and signature of the applicant but column meant for mentioning the place is left blank. NAMADHU MGR - DIVISION OF JAYA PUBLICATION Evidence referred is DW. 88 - K. Soundravelan, Chartered Accountant. YEAR TAX RETURNS IN EXHIBITS ORDERS OF COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX (APPEALS) IN EXHIBITS AMOUNT 1992-93 Ex.D218 EX.D232 68,60,000.00 1993-94 Ex.D219 Ex.D233 2,23,26,000.00 1994-95 Ex.D220 Ex.D234 2,07,75,000.00 1995-96 Ex.D221 Ex.D234 5,57,37,000.00 1996-97 Ex.D225 - 3,53,37,000.00 TOTAL 14,10,35,000.00 Less: ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rlier, there is a delay in filing the returns. It is contention of the learned counsel for the respondents - prosecution and the General Secretary, DMK Party that this claim is fictitious claim and it is an afterthought. When Income Tax returns have not been filed for many years, it disentitles the assessee substantially. A doubt arises in the genuineness of the Income Tax returns. But when it is produced before the Income Tax department after a long time and is not produced when its production was warranted, it is a suspicious circumstance against the genuineness of the claim of the assessee in respect of this subscription item i.e. Namadhu MGR. However, in the instant case, DW.s. 3, 4, 5, 6, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, speak about the deposit of amount ranging from Rs. 12,000/- to Rs. 18,000/- for issue of Namadhu MGR newspaper. They also state that they have presented the applications before the Jaya Publications. Taking into consideration of the evidence of defence witnesses mentioned hereinabove, even if there is a delay in filing the Income Tax returns, this cannot be a factor to reje ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... book for the period from 18.4.1995 to 23.4.1996. He has further deposed that Super Duper TV Pvt. Ltd. has made TV coverage of the marriage of Sudhakaran, for that a sum of Rs. 2,00,000/- was paid by Ramkumar to the Company. Prior to incorporation of Super Duper TV Pvt. Ltd., the same business was carried under the name and style of 'Super Duper TV'. It was managed by A-3 as a Proprietor. Ex. D163 - Invoice book. Invoice bearing Sl. Nos. 1 and 2 dated 17.11.1994 raised in favour of Tamilnadu Tourism Development Corporation Limited for Rs. 4,35,705/- in respect of the equipments supplied by A-3 to the said Corporation, Trichy Branch. In the same book, invoice Nos. 3 and 4 raised in favour of M/s. Tamilnadu Tourism Development Corporation Limited for Rs. 4,32,105/- in respect of equipments supplied by A-3 to Tanjavur Branch, TTDC. In the same book, invoice Nos. 5 and 6 dated 17.11.1994 for Rs. 4,28,505/- are in respect of the equipments supplied to Chidambaram Branch of TTDC. The said invoices were signed by one Kuberan, who was working as an Assistant in the Super Duper TV Pvt. Ltd. The Photostat copy of the statement of account pertaining to Current Account No. 1104 for the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Balaji Steel Corporation Ltd., enclosing Cheque bearing No. 281531 dated 28.9.1994 for Rs. 1,00,000/- towards Telecast charges. Ex. D174 is the bill dated 12.09.1994 for Rs. 10,000/- in favour of the Manager, Min Bimangal, Mookambika Complex, Alwarpet, Madras towards hire charges. Ex. D176 is the letter dated 20.10.1994 addressed by Tamil Nadu Film Development Corporation to M/s. Super Duper TV enclosing Cheque No. 485856 dated 20.11.1994 for Rs. 1,50,000/-. Ex. D177 is the letter dated 29.09.1994 addressed by Chettinad Cement Corporation Ltd. to M/s. Super Duper TV enclosing cheques bearing Nos. 047085 and 047086 dated 29.9.1994 for Rs. 50,000/- each towards advertisement charges. During the cross-examination, he states that the Income Tax Department had accepted the figure Rs. 62.15 Lakhs shown as receipts under scheme deposit by the assessee during the assessment year 1995-96. He also states that the receipts of 473 persons were signed by Kuberan. 907 persons' applications have been produced. Ex. D121 - agreement executed by the subscriber in favour of the Super Duper TV Pvt. Ltd. contain a clause that the entrance fees of Rs. 5,000/- payable by each of subscribers is n ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... gh Power Agent MKN.Manikam Lex Property Development Pvt. Ltd. Door No.149, T.T.K.Sabi, I Cross Street (Old No.17) Mowbay's Road, Chennai. 4,50,000.00 Ex.P4 S.V.S.Maniyan MD Idayam Publication Jaya Publication, Rep.by Selvi J.Jayalitha and Sasikala Thiru.Vi.ka Industrial Estate (S) S-7 bearing T.S.No.43 Part and 45 part Block, S.Nos.32/3 part, 32/4 part 12,60,000.00 Ex.P6 Chairman & M.D. TANSI, an undertaking of Tamil Nadu Jaya Publication, Rep. by Sasikala TANSI foundry (defunct) Thiru.Vi.Ka Industrial Estate Guindy Block No.5 of 12462, 172 Sq.mt. 1,82,13,550.00 Ex.P8 TANSI, an undertaking of Tamil Nadu Chairman & M.D. K.A.Mathew, IAS M/s. Sasi Enterprises, Rep. by Sasikala TANSI Enameled wires (defunct) Thiru.Vi.Ka Industrial Estate, Guindy Chennai, Block No.6 of 2580 Sq.mt. 79,54,650.00 Ex.P23 R.Ramachandran M/s.Sasi Enterprises, by its partner N.Sasikala Door No.18, East Abhiramapuram, Mylapore, Madras 43,00,000.00 Ex.P24 Janaki Srinivasan M/s.Anjaneya Printers, Rep. by Chairman V.N.Sudhagaran New Door No.21, Padmanabha Chetty Street, T.Nagar, Madras-17 2,80,000.00 Ex.P25 S.Ranganathan -do- -do- 2,80,000.00 Ex.P26 Hemamalini Natarajan, Her powe ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 43/2, 3 acres 51 cents, Karunkuzhipallam, Chenglepet 1,40,000.00 Ex.P76 Narasammal & Chandra Bai -do- S.No.46, 4 acres 52 cents, Karunkuzhipallam village, Chenglet Dist. 1,80,000.00 Ex.P77 Krishnan & 3 others -do- S.No.45, 4 acres 15 cents, Karunkuzhipallam village, Chenglet Dist. 1,64,000.00 Ex.P78 -do- -do- -do- 1,64,000.00 Ex.P79 Uma Shankarmadi Jaya Publication N.Sasikala Door No.98/99, Luz Church Road, Mylapore, Madras-4 1,87,000.00 Ex.P81 Rathnavelu A-2 4.41 acres of land at Velakapuram S.No.198/180F6 33,075.00 Ex.P82 -do- A-2 0.41 acres of agricultural land S.No.154/B2 Velakapuram 3,075.00 Ex.P83 Baby A-2 4.41 acres of land Velakapuram 33,075.00 Ex.P84 Mathivanan A-2 1.42 acres of land Velakapuram S.No.198/180F3 10,650.00 Ex.P85 Suresh A-2 1.42 acres Velakapuram S.No.198/180F15 10,650.00 Ex.P86 Sivagami & 2 others A-2 4.41 acres of land at Velakapuram S.No.198/180 F7 33,075.00 Ex.P87 Swaminathan A-2 4.41 acres of land at Velakapuram S.No.198/180 F2 33,075.00 Ex.P88 V.D.Balasubramaniam A-2 4.41 acres of land at Velakapuram S.No.198/180 F5 33,075.00 Ex.P89 Ajmal Khan A-2 4.41 acres of land at Velakapuram S.No.198 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... in S.No.74/1, old pymash Nos.152 & 152A of 145 Neelangorai village 6,80,000.00 Ex.P136 A.Arifa Amanullah Lex Property 11 cents of land and building in S.No.74/1, old 152A of 145 Neelangorai village 8,20,000.00 Ex.P137 M.O.Amanullah Maraicoir A-4 124, Siruthavur village 1,90,000.00 Ex.P138 -do- A-4 124, Siruthavur village & 111, Karunguzhipallam, Alanthur 1,90,000.00 Ex.P139 -do- A-4 Siruthavur, S.No.381/1 1,70,000.00 Ex.P143 A.S.K.Raja Ramraj Agro Mills 3.11 acres of land, S.No.79, Vandampalai village, Nannilam Taluk 62,200.00 Ex.P144 A.S.Arunachalam, GPA Holder Mr.Gandhi Ramraj Agro Mills 4.44 acres of land, S.No.83/1 & S.No.80 situated in 165 Vandampalai village 88,800.00 Ex.P145 S.Ramasamy, GPA Holder Gandhi Ramraj Agro Mills 6.50 acres Keelakavathukudi village, S.Nos.81/1, 81/2, 84/1 and 82/1c situated in 165 vandampalai village 1,30,000.00 Ex.P146 Mrs.Valli, GPA Holder Gandhi Ramraj Agro Mills 8.91 acres of land S.Nos.77/1A, 1C, 1B and 82/1B situated in 165 vandampalai village 1,78,200.00 Ex.P147 A.Rajamani Ammal Power Agent Mr.Asokan Ramraj Agro Mills, Madras-2 4.57 acres of land, S.Nos.75, 76/5, 76/2A, 77/1D, 78/1, 78/2 at No.165 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... P666 185 Rs. 20,43,000.00 12 Ex.P641 186 Rs. 24,83,759.00 13 Ex.P642 187 Rs. 10,92,828.00 14 Ex.P668 188 Rs. 53,11,000.00 15 Ex.P644 189 Rs. 20,38,959.00 16 Ex.P677 190 Rs. 39,34,000.00 17 Ex.P674 & Ex.P675 191 Rs. 14,17,538.00 Total Rs.27,79,88,945.00 This Court has given a finding to the effect that the cost of construction is Rs. 5,10,54,060/-. Cost of construction as per DV & AC - Rs.27,79,88,945.00 Less: Cost of construction as per finding of this Court Rs. 5,10,54,060.00 Rs. 22,69,34,885.00 This amount of Rs. 22,69,34,885/- has been deducted from the assets. In so far as Gold, Diamond jewelry, Silver wares, Fixed Deposit, Shares, Cash balance in Bank Accounts Valuation of the Vehicle, Valuation of the Machineries, Valuation of the Wrist Watches are concerned, the valuation made by the Director of Vigilance and Anti Corruption has been accepted. Section 107 of the IPC deals with abetment of a thing. Abetment is constituted by instigating a person for committing an offence or intentionally hiding a person committing it. Instigation necessarily connotes some suggestion or support or stimulation to the commi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ombination or agreement between two or more persons to do an unlawful act. There must be reason to believe that there was conspiracy and accused persons were members of that conspiracy. Section 10 of the Indian Evidence Act deals with things said or done by the Conspirator in reference to common desire. This section will come into play only when Court is satisfied that there are reasonable ground to believe that two or more persons have conspired together i.e. to say there must be prima facie evidence. Where evidence is only circumstantial, the circumstance in their totality must be such as would not only be consistent with the guilt of the Accused, but also inconsistent with any reasonable hypothesis of his innocence. The aspects of criminal conspiracy are an agreement to believe an illegal act. In the present case, evidence on record discloses that Accused Nos. 2 to 4 have borrowed huge amount and they have acquired the immovable properties like agricultural lands, legal entities. The source of income is lawful. Object is also lawful. Just because Accused Nos. 2 to 4 stay along with Accused No. 1, that itself is not component which the Court can come to the conclusion that Accus ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... sons for offences and for subjecting them to penalties. It firstly provides that no person shall be convicted of any offence except for violation of a law in force at the time of the commission of the act charged as an offence. Secondly, it provides that no person shall be subjected to a penalty greater than that which might have been inflicted under the law in force at the time of the commission of the offence. Notice of the interim order should be given to the concerned parties. The court should indicate the money or value of the property obtained by means of the said offence. Section 12 of the Ordinance lays down that criminal court convicting the accused shall record finding as to the amount of money or value of other property procured by the accused by means of the offence. It is at the end of the trial only the court will be in a position to evaluate the money or other property procured by the accused by means of the offence. No specific provision was made for determination by the court of the illegal profits and other gains obtained by the accused from the properties acquired by him by bribery or corruption. The court will determine to what extent the assets are disproportio ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n in case if there is acquittal of the Accused, it will not have the effect of terminating the attachment. However, since no notice have been issued to the Accused, the Trial Court has not considered the statement of witnesses and also the statement of the accused and also the evidence placed on record. The Trial Court has failed to appreciate the evidence in a proper perspective. The immovable properties were acquired by borrowing huge loan from the Nationalised Banks. It is difficult to infer that the properties were acquired by means of ill-gotten money. Therefore, in my view, confiscation of the properties by the Trial Court is not sustainable in law. Dr. Subramanian Swamy filed a private complaint before the Principal Sessions and District Judge, Chennai in Miscellaneous Petition No. 3238/1996 which was registered. After registration of the crime, exercising the power under section 210 of Cr.P.C., both private complaint and the complaint instituted under the Police report were clubbed. Accused No. 1 was arrayed as Accused in the First Information Report. Though names of Accused Nos. 2 to 4 were mentioned in the first information report, they were not arrayed as Accused. Benam ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... o plaintiff is a must. Section 103 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 reads as under: "103. Burden of proof as to particular fact - The burden of proof as to any particular fact lies on that person who wishes the Court to believe in its existence, unless it is provided by any law that the proof of that fact shall lie on any particular person." All the facts, however, numerous and complicated which goes to make the Accused guilt, must be proved by the prosecution. If the Accused wishes to prove a particular fact, for example, source of income from which he acquired the assets, then he must prove it. The role played by each of the Accused has also to be established by the Prosecution. But, in the instant case, prosecution has not adduced any evidence in respect of section 103 of the Indian Evidence Act. It is the allegation of the prosecution that Accused Nos. 1 to 4 acquired various immovable properties, invested huge amount towards construction. Though nearly 14 Engineers were examined, but the valuation report has been marked, the Engineers did not speak anything about measurement of the buildings, except marking the valuation report. It is well settled that the documents do no ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nt of expenditure that might have occurred. Their evidence is hear-say. The evidence on record reveals that party workers took up the responsibility of erecting pandal. Sri A.R. Rahman and Sri Mandolin Srinivas have performed music with free of cost. The bridegroom's grandfather is Mr. Sivajiganeshan. He was a famous Tamil film actor. He was also known to A.R. Rahman. Now the question that arises is what is the amount that was spent by Accused No. 1 for the marriage of Accused No. 3. Accused No. 1 has declared in her income tax returns that she has spent about Rs. 28,68,000/-. In our Hindu customs, it is bride's family members who take care of marriage expenditure. Nominal expenditure will be borne by bridegroom's family. Just because Accused No. 1 was Chief Minister at that time, we cannot saddle all the marriage expenses on her part. Relying on income tax returns towards expenditure of marriage, I consider that she has spent about Rs. 28,68,000/-. Besides, evidence of father of bride is withheld by the prosecution. Accused No. 3 Bridegroom has also not entered the witness box. The Priest who has performed the marriage has not been examined. The Contractor for putting ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... o Kodanadu Manager there and later returned to Thirunelveli. Kodanadu Tea Estate measures 800 acres. In that, already in 700 acres, tea has been cultivated. The remaining were vacant lands. Hiriyan said that there, one acre of land will fetch Rs. 1 lakh. In Kodanadu there were two Bungalows, one tea factory and quarters for the employees. On perusal of evidence of PW. 71, it is clear that Kodanadu Tea Estate generated income to the extent of Rs. 7 Crores. This is the income generated from the tea estate. The Investigating Agency has valued the building constructed in the tea estate and also pipes laid down in the tea estate. But, it is very strange that they have not assessed the income of the tea estate and added to Annexure-III i.e., income during check period between 1.7.1991 to 30.4.1996. The Investigating Agency has omitted this income in Annexure-III. Even defence has not examined any witness as to what is the income generated from the tea estate and they have also not claimed the same. Therefore, this court has not considered this income while calculating disproportionate assets. However, I am constrained to mention that this aspect cannot be ignored totally while calculatin ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... bsp; Total (B) 6,16,36,222 (A+B) 28,85,71,107 Less: (A+B) 28,85,71,107 TOTAL ASSESTS 37,59,02,466 Statement of the income of Accused Nos. 1 to 4, firms and companies are as under: Sl.No. Particulars Amount (in Rupees) 1. Loans as income 18,17,46,000 2. Income from grape Garden 46,71,600 3. Gifts 1,50,00,000 4. Sasi Enterprises 25,00,000 5. Jaya Publications & Namadhu MGR 4,00,00,000 6. Super Duper TV Pvt. Ltd., 1,00,00,000 7. Rental Income 3,22,000 8. Income assessed by DV & AC 9,34,26,054 TOTAL INCOME 34,76,65,654 DISPROPORTIONATE ASSETS Total Assets - Total Income Rs.37,59,02,466-Rs.34,76,65,654= Rs.2,82,36,812 Percentage - Disproportionate assets x 100 Income - Rs.2,82,36,812 x 100 Rs.34,76,65,654 =8.12% It is well settled law that according to Krishnanand Agnihotri's case, when there is disproportionate asset to the extent of 10%, the accused are entitled for acquittal. A circular has been issued by the Government of Andhra Pradesh that disproportionate asset to the extent of 20% can also be considered as a permissible limit. The margin of 10% to 20% of the disproportionate assets has been taken a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... time and simply arrived at a conclusion that 20% of the cost has to be reduced without appreciating the evidence placed on record. This 20% reduction is calculated on surmises and conjectures. The Trial Court has assessed the Marriage Expenses at Rs. 3,00,00,000/-. There is no acceptable evidence to point-out that A-1 has spent about Rs. 3,00,00,000/-. In spite of it, the Trial Court has arrived at a figure of Rs. 3,00,00,000/- as modest and conservative estimation. Arriving at Rs. 3,00,00,000/- towards marriage expenses and fixing liability of Rs. 3,00,00,000/- to A-1 alone is not proper. Most of the claims put-forth by the accused have been rejected by the Trial Court. It is the contention of the learned counsel for the appellants that without treating the witnesses as hostile, the witnesses were recalled and cross-examined. The questions are put in such a manner that whether what they have stated in the examination-in-chief is correct or in the cross-examination is correct by securing answer to this question and also by adopting this method, they cannot wipe-out the answers elicited in the cross-examination. This is also one of the factors, which weigh in favour of the accused. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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