The panel set up to investigate the death of former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Friday summoned her aide and ousted party general secretary VK Sasikala, and Pratap Reddy, the chairman of Chennai’s Apollo Hospital, ANI reported.
Jayalalithaa was treated at the hospital for several weeks before she died in December 2016.
The Tamil Nadu government had set up a Commission of Inquiry under Justice A Arumughaswamy in September, after state ministers made contradicting claims
about their access to Jayalalithaa during her hospitalisation.
The order asked the judge to “inquire into the circumstances and situation leading to the hospitalisation of Jayalalithaa on September 22, 2016, and the subsequent treatment provided to her till her demise on December 5, 2016”.
In September, Tamil Nadu Forest Minister Dindigul Srinivasan had claimed leaders of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam had misled the public into believing that Jayalalithaa’s health was improving as they were afraid of Sasikala.
Days later, Tamil Nadu Co-operation Minister Sellur K Raju added to the speculation by saying that all ministers met the former chief minister when she was in hospital.
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam Working President MK Stalin had then asked the Centre to order an inquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation.
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