Chennai: Tamil Nadu's enduring political rivalry between AIADMK chief J Jayalalitha and Chief Minister M Karunanidhi has found new focus - a sprawling 45-room farmhouse belonging to relatives of Jayalalitha's confidante N Sasikala's relatives and "rented" by the former chief minister.
Jayalalitha, who used the farmhouse in Siruthavoor village, about 45 km from Chennai, during her tenure as chief minister during 2001-2006, said she only "rented" it and did not know the owners.
Earlier this week, on Wednesday, DMK chief Karunanidhi asked retired Madras High Court judge KP Sivasubramaniam to head a one-man commission to probe allegations that Jayalalitha, her old friend Sasikala and the latter's relatives had illegally taken from 20 Dalits in Siruthavoor the land on which the farmhouse stands.
According to the CPI-M, the 53 acres of farmland was given to the Dalit farmers by Dravidian leader CN Annadurai in 1967 and was acquired by Sasikala's relatives during Jayalalitha's tenure in 1991-1996.
Jayalalitha used a farmhouse built on this land during her next tenure as chief minister that ended this year with Karunanidhi winning the elections.
According to the DMK mouthpiece Murasoli, the Siruthavoor farmhouse belongs to VN Sudhakaran, Sasikala's nephew, whom Jayalalitha had once declared as her adopted son.
Another newspaper claimed on Thursday that it had revenue documents that showed ownership of the farmhouse, camouflaged as property belonging to the 'Bharani Resorts', rested with three relatives of Sasikala including her sister-in-law Ilavarasi.
The house is palatial and luxurious by any standards.
"The Siruthavoor bungalow is set on a 200-acre plot of land and (can be) approached via a long, superbly lit, winding driveway half a kilometre long. Bordering the driveway is an artificial stream which supplies water to the six fish ponds inside the house," a source said after visiting Sasikala's various properties on Chennai's outskirts.
"The lights are powered by a separate generator installed exclusively for the house. The sprawling structure boasts of four entrances with individual porticos each with ornate red granite pillars, around 45 rooms, four kitchens, walls and floors of white marble, two winding staircases to the first floor, dominated by two identical bedrooms and each over 1,500 square feet in area,” the source added.
The house has two fibreglass jacuzzis, and also a private helipad.
Before the May 2006 Assembly elections, Jayalalitha filed her assets before the Election Commission, saying her properties and investments were valued at Rs 250.35 million.
Hitting back at Karunanidhi, Jayalalitha insisted in a fresh statement on Thursday that the DMK chief disclose his own and his family's assets before a television audience.
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