mp keeps patting her child, cries with mother in court: Kanimozhi’s son Aditya, husband G Aravindan and mother Rajathi Ammal leave court in New Delhi on Saturday. Pictures by Reuters and Prem Singh

New Delhi, May 21: Kanimozhi today kept hugging her little boy, tousling his hair and kissing him as he sat in her lap in the courtroom, her eyes puffy from too much weeping or too little sleep or both.

Sitting by husband G. Aravindan, a Singapore-based businessman, in the 2G trial court, she also kept whispering into son Aditya’s ears. Off and on, she dabbed her eyes, possibly blinking away the pooling tears.

Tihar officials said the 43-year-old DMK MP had spent a sleepless night in her non-AC 15ftx10ft solitary cell in jail No. 6, and had not eaten any dinner.

“She could not check her tears when she was being frisked by policewomen before she was taken to her cell in the women’s ward of the jail,” an official said.

This morning, she had tea and biscuits shortly after the 6am roll call. She then scanned the newspapers and around 8.30am left for the court in the orange salwar-kameez she wore yesterday, escorted by two women constables.

The day’s proceedings in judge .P. Saini’s courtroom began a little after 10am. Around that time, former telecom minister A. Raja, Kalaignar TV managing director Sharad Kumar and Kanimozhi were led in.

Both Kanimozhi and Kumar were denied bail yesterday. They are accused of conspiring with Raja to accept a Rs 200-crore bribe routed through the Karunanidhi family-owned channel in return for spectrum licence favours.

Some 15 DMK loyalists were seated in the cramped courtroom — scheduled to hear the bail pleas of Asif Balwa and Rajiv Aggarwal — by the time Kanimozhi walked in. Led by former DMK minister Aladi Aruna, they were seen greeting her with folded hands. She greeted them in turn, and then held Aruna’s hands.

When her husband came in a little later with Aditya, she gathered the boy in an embrace and kissed him on the forehead. She then sat him in her lap and started talking to him, as Aravindan seated himself beside her.

A while later, Kanimozhi’s mother Rajathi arrived along with two DMK loyalists. Mother and daughter teared up as they hugged, then got busy talking to each other.

When the court broke for lunch at 1.30, Kanimozhi was led back to the lock-up, where she had home food brought by her husband, jail officials said.

She sat flanked by her mother and husband when the court resumed after the 30-minute break, talking without end and hugging her son again and again. She then introduced Aditya to Swan Telecom promoter Shahid Usman Balwa and his wife, who asked the boy about school and his hobbies.

Judge Saini deferred the verdict on Aggarwal and Asif Balwa’s bail pleas till Tuesday. Kanimozhi’s lawyers said she would move Delhi High Court for bail on Monday.

After proceedings got over, Rajathi broke down. As the policewomen began rushing Kanimozhi, she hurriedly hugged her son and began walking with them. Her mother, husband and son followed her right up to the gate of the lock-up, Rajathi even trying to shield Kanimozhi from media hounds.

Courtroom revamp

Two judges today inspected the 2G courtroom and discussed modalities to use existing space more efficiently so that the accused, their relatives, lawyers, mediapersons and onlookers do not face difficulties.

Justices Talwant Singh and Sanjiv Jain, however, rejected the plea of Swan Telecom promoter Balwa that reporters should be kept out of the courtroom during hearings as they took up most of the space.

He suggested that a screen connected to closed-circuit cameras could be installed outside for the media. He also sought installation of more ACs in the courtroom that has seven.

One judge said a separate media gallery should be set up and asked accompanying officials to ensure there were two entrance gates — one for the lawyers and accused, and the other for the journalists and the public.