Will decide about joining politics soon: Jayalalithaa's niece Deepa Jayakumar

CHENNAI: The cult politics in Tamil Nadu has found its latest and perhaps the weirdest expression with late Jayalalithaa's niece Deepa Jayakumar throwing her hat and claiming that several people have asked her to stake claim for the AIADMK leadership.

Mrs Deepa, MBA graduate who was hitherto unknown to the public, shot into media fame after images of her waiting outside the gates of Apollo Hospital after being denied access to meet her aunt Jayalalithaa when she was battling for her life on the night of December 4.

In interactions with media since Jayalalithaa's death, Mrs Deepa has been claiming that she has been receiving lot of requests from “partymen” to take a plunge into politics. On Thursday, as “several people” thronged her residence in T. Nagar here, she spoke to reporters briefly saying that she will take a “decision about her future” soon.

“I will discuss with my supporters, my family and others and arrive at a decision soon. There have been lot of requests (asking to join politics) but I will decide soon,” she told reporters. Mrs Deepa is the brother's daughter of late Jayalalithaa and her brother is Deepak Jayakumar who performed last rites of the late chief minister along with her close aide Sasikala Natarajan.

Mrs Deepa and her brother Deepak don't share the best of relations and the latter had told the media recently about his meeting with his late aunt.

“I will take into consideration the request from cadre,” she said. However, Mrs Deepa refused to answer a question on Sasikala Natarajan taking over as AIADMK chief.

Political commentator Gnani Sankaran says people close to popular leaders have always tried to take political advantage. “This is nothing but people taking advantage of popularity of those close to them. She is trying to do that. Some people are coming to meet her and she is nursing political ambitions,” he said.