Jayalalitha is languishing in jail and one thing primarily responsible for her current predicament is the 1995 wedding of her foster son, Sudhakaran.
Jaya had adopted Sudhakaran, the son of the elder sister of her confidant Sasikala. Once Jaya adopted him, Sudhakaran used that influence to amass huge wealth.
Jaya reportedly splurged around Rs 7 crore for his wedding. The flaunting of wealth created revulsion among the public and led to her loss in the subsequent elections.
Jaya in her affidavit claimed that the entire expenses for the wedding were borne by the father of the bride.
When the Courts examined the case, they found that Jaya had shown the entire expenses of the wedding in her ‘IT Returns’.
While claiming tax benefits on the one hand, she in public sought to lay her hands off the entire event. However, the Courts said that Jaya spent around Rs 4 crore and not Rs 7 crore. Anyway, what difference does it make now?
The Splurge
- The wedding hall and dining rooms cost Rs.70 lakh.
- Decorations - cut-outs, hoardings, papier-mache statues - and the illumination cost Rs.50 lakh.
- There were two lakh tamboolam (return gift) packets. Cost: Rs.16 lakh.
- VIP invitations included a silver plate with containers, a silk saree and silk dhoti - each worth Rs.20.000. Over 1,000 VIPs were invited.
- Lunch for the VIP guests cost Rs.100 a head; each VIP was given bottled mineral water and a fresh hand-towel. Food for the 1,10.000 partymen cost Rs.40 per head.
- Almost a 1,000 rooms at Madras top hotels were reserved for VIPs; the average rent per room is about Rs.3,000.
- About 300 air-conditioned cars, rented at Rs.1,100 per day, were used. (Courtesy: India Today)
