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Karunanidhi flays transfer of IT officials pursuing Jaya's cases

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi today said the transfer of senior income tax officials dealing with cases involving former chief minister J Jayalalitha was a "blatant misuse of power" by Union ministers belonging to the All India Anna DMK. This was done to enable their party leader and her close friend Sasikala to wriggle out of the income tax and FERA violation cases.

Talking to newsmen in Madras, he said the transfers were part of attempts made by the AIADMK ministers in the Union Cabinet to help Jayalalitha and some of her erstwhile cabinet colleagues, who were facing corruption cases, and Sasikala, facing FERA violation cases. "But they will not succeed in bending justice", he asserted.

On Union Law Minister M Thambi Durai's rebuttal that he had not stated that Karunanidhi had a share in the re-investment of Rs 20 billion allowed by former Union minister P Chidambaram without following inspection procedures, Karunanidhi reiterated his charge that Thambi Durai had indeed stated that besides himself, former Union minister Murasoli Maran and Tamil Maanila Congress president G K Moopanar also had a share in the deal.

He showed clippings of The Times of India and The Statesman and a UNI report to buttress his argument.

On the controversy over implementation of 69 per cent reservation for backward classes in admission to professional colleges, Karunanidhi said the case was pending before a constitutional bench of the Supreme Court. Meanwhile, the state government had urged the Centre to bring in a constitutional amendment to empower the state governments to fix the quantum of reservation, according to their needs. But it required enough support from all the political parties, he pointed out.

Replying to a question, he said the Centre was yet to respond to the state government's plea to sanction a sum of Rs 100 million to modernise the state police force. The state government had sent a reminder to the Centre, he added.

On the agitation by secondary school teachers, demanding pay parity with their central government counterparts, he said the Sivasubramaniam Commission was asked to look into the demand.

UNI

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