Chennai:
Tamil Nadu minister K Pondmudy was on Thursday awarded three years in jail in a corruption case. The Madras High Court had set aside a trial court order two days ago to convict the DMK leader and his wife in a Rs 1.75-crore disproportionate assets case.
But he need not surrender yet since his jail term has been suspended for 30 days to allow him to appeal his conviction in the Supreme Court.
Mr Ponmudy ceases to be a minister after his conviction and his higher education portfolio is likely to be handed over to another cabinet colleague.
Under the law, Members of the legislature system are disqualified from either the parliament or the assembly if they are convicted by a court.
His sentencing came a day after Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi demanded that Chief Minister MK Stalin drop him from his cabinet.
The case dates back to the DMK’s 2006-2011 regime when the convicted leader had accumulated over Rs 1.36 crore in assets. It was brought to the court by the rival AIADMK, which came to power in 2011.
The Ponmudy case has added to tensions between the Tamil Nadu government and the Governor.
