When a court staff nearly lost job for wearing Sudhakaran's 487-gm gold belt

Read how Jayalalithaa and co’s jewellery created a flutter in a Chennai court house

There is no doubt that the marriage of Sudhakaran the former foster son of Jayalalithaa was a lavish affair. It was this wedding that became the basis of the disproportionate assets case in which a conviction was recorded by the trial court and then the Supreme Court.

There are several incidents that transpired both in and outside the courts which were a subject of discussion for legal correspondents covering the trial. Journalists from Bengaluru and Chennai would very often discuss such incidents over coffee and cigarettes.

A 487.4 gram diamond studded gold belt was brought to the Chennai special court presided over by Judge Sambadham. The gold belt worn by Sudhakaran during his lavish wedding in 1995 was quite the head turner, journalists recall. Everyone wanted to have a look at it and one journalist even went ahead and held it in his hand.

However, an overzealous male typist took it a notch further. He wore the gold belt known as the Kaasumaalai around his neck for a while and then handed it to others. He was pulled up and only then did he realise the seriousness of his act. Following the court proceedings he pleaded with the journalists present not to report the incident. The journalists obliged.

But a week later, the New York Times published a story about the incident. The story was based on inputs from journalists inside the court hall. This was then translated by a Tamil daily and this spelt trouble for the typist. He was suspended briefly after being issued a memo.

OneIndia News