The four-year old investigation in the Kodanad heist and murder case is all set to get a new lease of life, with the police set to question ousted AIADMK leader V.K. Sasikala. Her deposition before the investigating officers assumes significance as she is the only person other than former chief minister Jayalalithaa to know it all inside the white mansion in Kodanad. An investigation team led by West Zone Inspector General of Police R. Sudhakar is all set to question Sasikala at her T. Nagar residence in Chennai.
She had told THE WEEK in an interview last year that she was disappointed with the probe into the case. She was in the Parapanna Aghrahara prison then.
A Special Investigation Team (SIT) from Nilgiris district has been probing the case, while the trial is pending in the court. The team earlier questioned Sasikala’s nephew Vivek Jayaraman and former MLA Arukutty, who switched sides from O. Panneerselvam (OPS) faction to Edappadi K. Palaniswami (EPS) one in 2017, few weeks after the Kodanad break-in.
Situated in the picturesque Nilgiris district, the Kodanad white mansion was Jayalalithaa’s favourite summer retreat. There were days when Jayalalithaa ran her government from there.
On April 28, 2017, 10 men hacked to death the security guard Om Bahadur, broke into the bungalow and looted the place. Palaniswami, who was then the chief minister, informed the assembly that only five wrist watches and a crystal showpiece were stolen. Following the investigation, K.V. Sayan and Manoj were arrested, while the alleged mastermind Kanagaraj died in a road accident.
Sasikala's questioning comes at a time when she has lost the case against EPS and OPS over the post of the party general secretary. In November 2021, when there was a discussion in the assembly about the Kodanad case, opposition leader Palaniswami and his MLAs staged a walkout alleging that the DMK government is trying to fix him in the case.