Jayalalithaa wearing ear studs on May 15, when she staked claim to form the government; (above) without the earrings on the day of the election results. PTI and AFP pictures

Chennai, June 1: Fourteen years ago, she had vowed in a huff that she would never wear jewellery again. But Jayalalithaa appears to have changed her mind, if only for the sake of her party cadres.

The Tamil Nadu chief minister today revealed that the reason she sported tiny golden studs in her ears during her May 16 swearing-in was purely emotional.

“I had spurned all kinds of jewellery after 1997 but whenever my party functionaries or cadres met me, they would urge me to wear jewels,” she said at a news conference.

“As the AIADMK was winning in the Assembly elections this time, many cadres insisted I should start wearing jewellery again. A few even threatened to immolate themselves if I did not.”

The 63-year-old leader had vowed to keep off jewellery for life after the DMK had her arrested for corruption in 1996 and slapped a disproportionate wealth case on her. Pictures had also appeared in the media of a large collection of jewellery, chiefly diamond ornaments, which had purportedly been amassed by Jayalalithaa and her friend Sasikala.

The chief minister today said she had bowed to the wishes of party cadres because some were capable of carrying out their threats even over her wearing jewellery.

She disclosed that a woman, deserted by her husband, had recently cut off her tongue because she had vowed to do so if the AIADMK came back to power. “I ensured she got medical help and also a government job,” the chief minister said.

Another woman had cut off her tongue to fulfil a similar vow, she said. “Since I do not want my cadres to hurt themselves in any way, I decided to fulfil their wish.

“Also, many of them asked me that when the Karunanidhi family can be so happy in spite of committing so many mistakes, why should you make this sacrifice?”

After Tamil eveninger Maalai Malar put out the story, readers responded variedly on its website. “Why does our precious gold need gold?” T.V. Selvam gushed.

Another reader, writing under the pseudonym “thinker”, said as long as Jayalalithaa did not touch public money for self-aggrandisement and paid taxes, the people would not mind even if she walked away with GRT Thanga Maaligai (a famous gold store in Chennai).

“You even take home a salary of Rs 20 lakh a month but do not fool the public by stating you will draw a salary of only one rupee while buying tea and coffee estates.”