The death and the fortunes that it changed

VK Sasikala: A close aide and confidante of Jaya for decades, Sasikala is at the heart of the probe and is facing allegations from the members of AIADMK that she was responsible for the death of Jayalalithaa. Sasikala was living at Jayalalithaa’s Poes Garden residence when she was taken ill on September 22, 2016. She was present throughout the hospitalisation. On her death, Sasikala returned to Poes Garden and made an unsuccessful bid to take over the AIADMK and become chief minister of Tamil Nadu. However, her conviction in the disproportionate assets case along with the deceased Jayalalithaa meant she is currently lodged in the Parappana Aghrahara Jail in Bengaluru. 

M Natarajan: Sasikala’s estranged husband Natarajan played an overarching role in the early days of Jayalalithaa’s entry into politics. Along with his wife, he lived in her Poes Garden residence for a period. But having fallen out with Jayalalithaa, he was expelled from the house. Sasikala, too, was banished in 2011 and only returned after severing contact with her husband and extended family. Natarajan passed away due to illness in March 2018. 

S George: IPS officer S George, who was a key police officer during Jayalalithaa’s reign, served as the Chennai city’s Commissioner before being removed in 2015. In his deposition before the commission, George had stated that he did not meet Jayalalithaa and only got updates from Health Secretary Radhakrishnan on the chief minister. Once an influential cop during Jayalalithaa’s reign, George retired from service in 2017. He has since found himself named in the gutkha scam that has surfaced.

Rama Mohana Rao: The ex-chief secretary was actively involved during Jayalalithaa’s hospitalisation. A row broke out between AIADMK ministers after reports that Rama Mohana Rao had mentioned their presence in Apollo Hospitals during his deposition to the commission. He later clarified that he had not made such comments. Rao was later subjected to an Income Tax raid in December 2016 and he got sacked as chief secretary.