Chennai: The Supreme Court has stayed all proceedings of the Arumughaswamy commission which was set up to probe the death of former Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa.

The stay was ordered based on the petitions filed by the Apollo Hospitals challenging the Madras high court order.

The bench ordered a stay even though the counsel for the commission argued that 90% of the inquiry had been completed and issued a notice staying further proceedings of the inquiry commission.

Apollo Hospitals had filed a petition in the Supreme Court after the Madras high court refused to stay the inquiry conducted by the Arumugasamy Commission. 

The hospital wanted the commission to constitute a 21-member expert medical committee to look into the medical aspects of the treatment provided to former chief minister J Jayalalithaa.

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The hospital alleged that the commission did not have the expertise to make sense of the medical records, decisions and the nature of the treatment provided to Jayalalithaa.

The AIADMK-led state government had set up the inquiry commission to look into the circumstances leading to the death of Jayalalithaa on December 5, 2016 at Apollo Hospitals, Chennai. 

The Madras high court had on April 4 rejected Apollo Hospital's objections to an inquiry commission set up to probe the death of Jayalalithaa looking into aspects of the treatment given to her. 

As mandated by its terms of reference, the Justice A Arumughaswamy Commission of Inquiry was empowered and entitled to look into the appropriateness, efficacy, adequacy or inadequacy of the treatment given to Jayalalithaa during her 75-day hospitalisation in 2016, said the Madras high court.

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The high court had refused to stall proceedings of the commission and disposed of the petition filed by the hospital seeking to quash the government orders, which laid down terms and reference of the probe panel. 

It had also rejected the prayer of the hospital for setting up a medical board to assist the panel during the inquiry. 

The government had set up the inquiry commission to look into circumstances leading to the death of the AIADMK's general secretary, citing doubts expressed by various people.

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