The Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Jayalalithaa, has been found guilty of corruption by a court in Bangalore today and sentenced to 4 years in jail, as well as being fined Rs 100 crore.
The ruling means she will have to stand down as Chief Minister and will be banned from contesting any poll for 10 years.
See here for live updates by The Hindu.
The conviction has resulted in a tense situation across Tamil Nadu. Shops and businesses have closed early in her constituency of Srirangam, as well as several other state cities such as Tanjavur and Coimbatore.
AIADMK supporters have stormed into the DMK leader M. Karunanidhi's residence in Chennai with clashes breaking out between rival groups.
Effigies and posters of Karunanidhi and his party members have been burnt in Chennai and Madurai, reports IndiaToday. See here for more.
Kerala state authorities have decided to stop all bus services into Tamil Nadu, fearing more violence and riots, reports Odisha Sun Times.
The case, which is over 18 years old, was filed initially by the BJP leader Subramaniam Swamy and taken forward by her political rival, the DMK party.
The prosecution argued she used her five year term as Chief Minister from 1991 to 1996 to collect up to 66 crores worth of assets.
Three of her aides, Sasikala, V.N. Sudhakaran and J. Ilavarasi, have also been found guilty.
In May, Jayalalithaa's party, AIADMK, won a landslide victory in Tamil Nadu, securing 37 of the 39 seats in the state, and emerging as third largest party in the Lok Sabha.
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