The Karnataka government is not keen on lodging J. Jayalalithaa in the Bangalore Central Jail and wants to shift the former Tamil Nadu chief minister to a prison in her home state.

Jayalalithaa has been lodged in the high security city jail ever since she was convicted in the Rs 66.65 crore disproportionate assets case on September 27.
Protests by AIADMK workers on the premises the Bangalore Central Jail and the Karnataka High Court have become uncontrolled in the last few days.

The developments have prompted the state government to deploy more platoons of the state reserve police to prevent any untoward incident. Jayalalithaa is facing a four-year jail term in the assets case. Several senior leaders of the AIADMK have been camping outside the prison to meet Amma.

"This is a hyper sensitive case. Last week, advocates from Tamil Nadu and AIADMK workers staged several demonstrations and accused us (the Karnataka government) of hatching a conspiracy to delay the hearing of Jayalalithaa's bail petition. We have been unnecessarily facing the flak ever since she was sentenced to four-year imprisonment in the case. We do not want such a volatile situation to go on in the state. It will be better if Jayalalithaa is shifted to a jail in Tamil Nadu," a senior minister of the Congress-led state government told MAIL TODAY.
Jaya had spent a few days in the hospital ward of the Bangalore prison citing ill-health. The prison authorities have already made arrangements to supply home-cooked food to the Tamil Nadu leader after she rejected jail food. This arrangement, however, cannot continue for long as it is against the prison rules, according to the jail authorities.

"The jail authorities are taking unnecessary diversions. Had we had strongly opposed the supply of home-made food to Jayalalithaa, it would have become a major political issue. There are chances of a few people even questioning us. In case something goes wrong, Karnataka will be accused of showing bias against the former chief minister. Tamil Nadu is already upset with the Karnataka government for several reasons, which include the Cauvery water-sharing agreement. We do not want any new problems between the two states," the minister said.

Jayalalithaa's bail plea is coming up for hearing on October 7. The state government will closely watch the court proceedings next week. "If the court proceedings are prolonged, we will write to the Centre asking its intervention to shift the former chief minister to a jail in Tamil Nadu," a source in the Karnataka government told MAIL TODAY.

Meanwhile, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has appealed AIADAMK workers and Tamilians in the state to keep calm and not to resort to violence. He told them that the state government was merely following the court order. (Daly Mail)