The Supreme Court has dismissed a plea by J Jayalalithaa’s legal heir for the return of her confiscated properties, clarifying that abatement of proceedings does not equate to acquittal. The court upheld previous rulings confirming her properties, linked to a disproportionate assets case, remain with the Tamil Nadu government despite her heirs’ claims.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a plea filed by the legal heir of former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, seeking the return of properties confiscated in a case against her. The court clarified that abatement of proceedings does not mean she was acquitted of the crime.
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A bench of Justices B V Nagarathna and Satish Chandra Sharma referred to the 2017 judgment in State of Karnataka v. J Jayalalithaa, where the proceedings were abated after her death. The court observed,
“Abatement would not imply that the judgment of the high court has attained finality.”
The top court was hearing a plea from Jayalalithaa’s niece, J Deepa, who staked a claim over her confiscated properties in the disproportionate assets (DA) case. The plea followed a January 29 ruling by a special CBI court that transferred all seized assets to the Tamil Nadu government.
Earlier, the Karnataka High Court had dismissed a similar plea by Jayalalithaa’s niece and nephew on January 13, confirming that her properties remained confiscated despite the abatement of proceedings. The Supreme Court had already upheld the special court’s conviction of the other accused in the DA case, validating the asset confiscation.
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Jayalalithaa was convicted for amassing wealth beyond her known sources of income. The seized properties, now with the Tamil Nadu government, include:
- Veda Nilayam, her iconic Poes Garden residence in Chennai
- Several land parcels and estates linked to the DA case
- Bank deposits, gold jewellery, and other financial assets
- Valuables amassed between July 1, 1991, and April 30, 1996
The high court allowed her heirs to prove if any assets were purchased before the check period, stating that if such claims were established, they could claim their value even if the properties were auctioned.
Case Title – J Deepa vs The Superintendent of Police | SLP(Crl) No. 2208/2025
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