AIADMK leaders pained over IT raids at Jaya's house

Chennai, Nov 18: A day after late last night surprise raids at 'Veda Nilayam', the Poes Garden residence of late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa in the city, the Income Tax  officials today started scrutinising the items seized from her house where her close-aide and jailed AIADMK leader V K Sasikala stayed before and after her death in December 2016, even as AIADMK leaders said they were pained about  the searches.  The searches, which started around 2200 hrs last night and ended around 0200 this morning, were carried out in  the rooms used by Sasikala and Poongundran, a long time  personal assistant of the late leader.  The raids were based on specific inputs that some people had conspired to clandestinely remove 'crucial evidence' such as documents and electronic gadgets from the rooms  occupied by the duo.  Stating that the rooms used by the late leader when she was alive were not searched, IT sources said 'it is a limited  mission. The entire premises were not searched'. The raids were seen as a follow-up action after the  five day massive raids at 187 places at the residential and office premises of Sasikala, her husband M Natarajan and her nephews and all her family members and friends. Raids were also conducted at Jaya TV controlled by Sasikala and at the residence of its CEO Vivek Jayaraman, the Jazz Cinemas owned by him and at the residence and  the Trusts run by his sister Krishna Priya in the city,  where Sasikala stayed during her five-day parole to meet her husband at the hospital where he underwent a dual  organ transplant.  About the raids, IT department source said 'such a big  step (searches at Jayalalithaa's house) by the IT department was done by officials in Delhi based on some crucial information.  UNI