A former Minister and his ‘vada case’

Covering court proceedings is exciting for reporters for the sheer variety it offers. Unlike other specialised beats, it gives us the opportunity to follow developments on everything under the sun. A legal correspondent is privy to fine arguments by the best legal minds on constitutional provisions, issues of governance, interpretations of law in criminal cases, spirited public interest litigation, and, of course, judicial sermons. What is truly thrilling, though, is covering criminal trial proceedings. This is where a reporter encounters the ingenuity of criminal lawyers, the desperation of the accused, the smartness or sometimes even collusion of state prosecutors, the innocence of witnesses, and the straight-faced court staff.

Interesting courtroom encounters became staple fare when the M. Karunanidhi regime in Tamil Nadu (1996-2001) set up three special courts in Chennai to try 46 corruption cases against former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, some of her erstwhile Cabinet colleagues, and IAS and IPS officers. The trials were conducted daily. The accused and their lawyers tried every trick to prolong the proceedings. Many of us would see accused politicians suddenly fall sick on crucial hearing dates. Fed up with such tactics, a special judge once went to a hospital, with lawyers, court staff, and journalists in tow, to frame charges against a former Minister, who was lying in bed.

In another case, just as the judge began to read out the charges, Jayalalithaa sneezed loudly. For a moment, everyone in the courtroom believed she was in real distress. She kept sneezing until the judge finished his part.

K.A. Sengottaiyan, one of Jayalalithaa’s fiercest loyalists and a former Transport Minister, was facing three cases then. An uncrowned king in the Gobichettipalayam constituency, he had joined the AIADMK as a fan of its founder and actor-turned-politician M G. Ramachandran (MGR). He imbibed MGR’s habit of loosening his purse strings. He enjoyed significant goodwill in his hometown, Erode district, for liberally tipping government employees. Journalists there would narrate tales of how the Telephone Department lineman would occasionally “discover” a faulty connection at his home to earn a princely tip.

Each time he appeared in court, dozens of supporters would accompany him, standing behind him and the other accused. Quite coincidentally, many prosecution witnesses would turn hostile. Rattled by the continuing volte-face of witnesses, the prosecution at one point decided to file a perjury case against a hostile witness to deter others.

During court hearings, Mr. Sengottaiyan’s personal assistant would arrange lunch for his supporters from a popular vegetarian restaurant chain. Some journalists were also shown patronage. On one occasion, hot vada with sambar and chutney was distributed not just to his supporters, but also to a section of the special court staff. A now-defunct Tamil newspaper published a report with the headline: “Sengottaiyan buys vada for court staff.” The story created quite a sensation. Special Judge-I Sambandham was furious. He issued a memo to all the staff, irrespective of whether or not they had eaten the vada. From that day, whenever journalists asked the court officer which case was listed for hearing the next day, if it was one of Mr. Sengottaiyan’s, the reply would be: “Naalaikku vada case, sir (Tomorrow is the vada case, sir).”

Eventually, Mr. Sengottaiyan was convicted in one of the “vada cases” and could not contest the 2001 Assembly elections. Later, he was acquitted by the Madras High Court, giving his political career a fresh lease of life. On Thursday, the leader, who was recently expelled from the AIADMK, which he served for over 50 years, joined actor-politician Vijay’s fledgling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam.

sureshkumar.d@thehindu.co.in