Jayalalithaa Jayaram or J.Jayalalithaa (born February 24, 1948) is the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, India (since March 2, 2002). She is also the general seceretary of All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (a regional party in the state). This is the second term of her Chief Ministership. She is popularly called "amma" by her followers.
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She was born in Mysore to actress Sandhya. Prior to her venture into politics, she had a successful career in the Tamil film industry as an actor. Chinnada Gombe, her first film (in Kannada) was a major hit. Her first Telugu film Manushulu Mamathalu made her a superstar. In 1972, she was honored by the Tamil Nadu government with the award Kalaimamani.
In 1981, she joined the AIADMK and was nominated to the Rajya Sabha in 1984 making her entry into the Parliament of India. In 1989, she was first elected to the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly where she became the first woman to be elected Leader of the Opposition. The then ruling party, DMK tried to assault her in assembly, and she took a oath to enter the assembly house only as the chief minister. True to her words, In 1991, she was not only re-elected to the legislative assembly but also became the chief minister for the first time serving as chief minister for the full tenure (June 24, 1991 - May 12, 1996). Due to an anti incumbency wave and several allegations of corruption against her ministerial colleagues and against herself, she lost the power to DMK in 1996 in a landslide, only to come back to power with a huge majority defying all predictions aired in the media and the exit polls in 2001.
Her achievements in this tenure as told by public are:
- Banning 'kandu vatti' (process of borrowing money) - relieving thousands of poors
- Banning lottery tickets - which meant savings for peasents
- Relaxation camp for elephants that served in temples
- Attracting many IT companies to Chennai - including INFOSYS
Awards and Degrees
In 1991, the University of Madras honored her by conferring the degree of D. Litt. (Doctor of Literature). In 1992, the TN Dr. MGR medical university conferred the degree of Doctor of Science on her. In 1993, the Madurai Kamaraj University conferred the degree of Doctor of Letters on her. In 2003, the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University conferred the degree of Doctor of Science on her and the Bharatidasan University conferred the degree of Doctor of Letters on her.
| Preceded by: O Panneerselvam (second time) |
Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu | Followed by: |