No stay on panel's probe into land-grabbing by Jaya: SC

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday refused to stay the proceedings of a Committee set up by the Tamil Nadu government to inquire into allegations of land-grabbing against former Chief Minister and AIADMK Chief J Jayalalithaa.
    
A Bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishanan refused to stay the Madras High Court order allowing the proceedings before a one-man committee headed by Justice (Retd) K P Sivasubramaniam.
    
The former Chief Minister has challenged the terms of reference of the committee probing the building and owing of a farmhouse in village Siruthavoor in Kanchipuram district.
    
The committee was set up after it was alleged by DMK and CPI (M) that Jayalalithaa was the owner of the farmhouse.
    
The committee was asked to determine the ownership of the land and as to who built the farm house.
    
It was alleged that the AIADMK chief extensively used the farmhouse during her tenure as the Chief Minister.
    
The parties opposed to AIADMK alleged that 53 acres of land was given to dalits by former Chief Minister C Annadurai in 1967. Jayalalithaa has maintained that it was a rented house.