2G: Jayalalithaa welcomes Supreme Court ruling

Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Thursday welcomed the apex court decision on the 2G case and said she would wait for the decision of the trial court on probing the role of union Home Minister P Chidambaram in the 2G spectrum allocation case before giving her views.

Queried by reporters for her reaction to the Supreme Court verdict on Chidambaram, she said, "I prefer to wait and see what happens in the special court."

On Thursday, the Supreme Court, while cancelling 122 2G-licences, left the decision of probing Chidambaram's role in the case to a separate trial court. Chidambaram was finance minister in 2008 when the licences were given out.

Asked about the union government defending Chidambaram while blaming DMK's A. Raja, who was former union telecom minister, she said: "Irrespective of what the central government may say, it is for the court to pronounce the final verdict."

Avoiding a direct answer to the question whether she would demand the resignation of Chidambaram, she said: "I don't want to say anything more at this stage."

Raja Kannappan of the AIADMK has filed a petition against Chidambaram in the Madras High Court questioning the validity of his election to the Sivaganga Lok Sabha seat in 2009.

He has been accused of manipulating the vote count.

Meanwhile, legal experts are of the view that the trial court will have to take into consideration the apex court's Thursday order while deciding the 2G spectrum allocation case.

"The exercise by the officers between September 2007 and March 2008 under the leadership of then telecom minister A. Raja was wholly arbitrary, capricious and contrary to public interest apart from being violative of the doctrine of equality," the verdict said.

"He (Raja) virtually gifted away the important national asset at throw away prices."

A senior advocate preferring anonymity said, "The trial court will have to consider the Supreme Court's decision. The position of the defendants in the 2G allotment case has become difficult with the apex court cancelling the 122 licences as illegal."

On the other hand, the DMK declined to comment on the apex court order as well as Congress party's strategy of putting the entire blame for the 2G scam on Raja.

The apex court's order that came a day ahead of the party's general council meeting has shocked the leaders and none of them were willing to comment.