Before prison: a half-read Pamuk,saying goodbye to son

Kanimozhi also said she felt odd without her nose-pin since she had worn it since she was 10 years old, she added. Prisoners are required to deposit all their jewellery at the time of being admitted to prison.

Earlier,the son,Aditya,was brought in to meet his mother just after the court rejected her bail plea and minutes before she was taken away. In oversized glasses,the boy looked lost as his mother hurriedly whispered: Be well till I return.

In court,her half-read copy of Orhan Pamuks My Name Is Red sat on a table across from her. Perhaps,the Turkish tale of intrigue and deceit told by multiple narrators will give her company in the cell. Her husband G Aravindam,who daily accompanied her to court,came forward to hug her before women constables whisked her away.

At Tihar,the women prison was abuzz with news of Mahadevi coming in. She is the first VIP to come to the womens jail in years so we gave her the title. Also,a lot of inmates and police personnel here cannot pronounce her name, said an official from Jail 6.

Kanimozhi made no special requests,not even about the food. She reportedly asked if the only fan in her 10 X 10 ft cell was running,and did not make any other comments about the facilities. The cell is reserved for first-timers.

The Superintendent and ward officials just took a round after the court order to ensure all arrangements were made, an official from Jail 6 said. Her cell is right behind that occupied by Madhuri Gupta,the senior IFS officer accused of spying,and next to the jail creche. The other high-profile inmate of the jail,Sonu Punjaban,is lodged right across Kanimozhi.

Kanimozhi is lodged by herself in the cell,that has an attached bathroom. The cell has a TV,like all other cells,a mat with a dari and blankets for bedding, said Additional DG R N Sharma.

He added that security was his prime concern. She is a sitting MP. We have to give top priority to her security arrangements,that is why we arranged a single cell for her, Sharma said.

He denied there had been any special requests from DMK leaders who had dropped in to visit her. They wanted to show solidarity with their leader. We do not entertain any special requests,so that is out of the question, he maintained.

Managing Director and CEO of Kalaignar TV Sharad Kumar,who was sent to jail along with Kanimozhi,has been lodged in a cell in Jail 4,the same jail where Suresh Kalmadi and other corporate bigwigs accused in the 2G scam have been put.

Though the court has allowed her home-cooked food,the order is yet to reach jail authorities. She only had dal-chaawal for dinner,and then read a Tamil book she had bought for about half an hour, a jail official added.

Kanimozhi reportedly has four-five books,both in Tamil and English,and some medicines. She has a blood pressure problem. She bought some medicines for that, an official said.

She was calm and totally composed8230; The only special request was for a pillow, a source said. We have given her two extra pillows8230; We do not normally allow pillows,but authorities will take a decision tomorrow, a jail official said.

A team of eight DMK MPs,including T R Baalu,came to Tihar jail about 15 minutes before Kanimozhi was herself brought in. Apart from them,there was another query,by a fellow party member. According to jail officials,soon after the court order was passed,former telecom minister A Raja enquired Which ward is she going to be kept?. Is she talking at all?