Jaya Krishna Cuttaree, GCSK (June 22, 1941 - December 19, 2018), more commonly known as Jayen Cuttaree, was a Mauritian

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

Early life and education

Cuttaree was born in Rose Hill,

Mauritius Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island country in the Indian Ocean, about off the southeastern coast of East Africa, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island (also called Mauritius), as well as Rodrigues, Ag ...

, to

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Associated with India * of or related to India ** Indian people ** Indian diaspora ** Languages of India ** Indian English, a dialect of the English language ** Indian cuisine Associated with indigenous peoples o ...

immigrants who had landed in Mauritius in the 19th century when it was a British colony. Cuttaree attended

Royal College Curepipe The Royal College Curepipe (commonly known as RCC) is the most prestigious secondary school in Mauritius, with extremely high admission standards. Since 1791 it has been regarded as a school of excellence and started to build a consistent laure ...

until being granted a scholarship in Scotland to attend the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

. There, he earned a BSc in Forestry. Subsequently, he studied Plant Ecology from the

University of Uppsala Uppsala University (UU) () is a public research university in Uppsala, Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic countries still in operation. Initially founded in the 15th century, the university rose to s ...

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, earning a

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

. Later on in life, he completed a law degree. Cuttaree is the brother-in-law of

Dev Virahsawmy Dev Virahsawmy (16 March 1942 – 7 November 2023) was a Mauritian politician, playwright, poet and advocate of the Mauritian Creole language. Though he wrote easily in both French and English, Virahsawmy was most renowned for his efforts to po ...

, who made history by becoming the first MMM politician to be elected to the Legislative Assembly in 1970. Dev's father, Simadree, was a minister of the Labour Party who later defected to rival party MTD.

Political career

Cuttaree was a member of Constituency No. 19 (Stanley / Rose Hill) from 1982 to 2010. He was appointed Minister for the first time in 1982 following the legislative elections that year. He was appointed Minister of Labour. Cuttaree then served as Minister of Lands and Housing after the victory of the MSM-MMM alliance in the 1991 Legislative Assembly. Following the 2000 general elections, he was appointed Minister of Industry and Trade. In 2005, Cuttaree was a candidate for the position of Director General of the

WTO The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland that regulates and facilitates international trade. Governments use the organization to establish, revise, and enforce the rules that g ...

as a candidate of the

African Union The African Union (AU) is a continental union of 55 member states located on the continent of Africa. The AU was announced in the Sirte Declaration in Sirte, Libya, on 9 September 1999, calling for the establishment of the African Union. The b ...

. Cuttaree's book, ''Behind The Purple Curtain: A Political Autobiography'', was premiered in December 2011, at a showing hosted by l'Opposition leader

Paul Bérenger Paul Raymond Bérenger (born 26 March 1945) is a Mauritian politician who served as the fourth prime minister of Mauritius from 2003 to 2005. Bérenger currently serves as deputy prime minister since November 2024 and has previously held the o ...

Controversies

2001 closing down of Economic Crime Office (ECO) to avoid investigation

Indira Manrakhan, the former director of ECO, explained how she received information that led her to believe there were reasonable grounds for an investigation on Jayen Cuttaree, who was in the running as ''future MMM President of the Republic''. ECO suspected that Cuttaree had assisted Harry Tirvengadum to illegally annex State Land next to his Floreal property. However, the MSM-MMM government intervened by closing down ECO, which was replaced by the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). At the time of its closure, ECO was investigating other Mauritian politicians under similar suspicions.

2001 Valayden's claims of unpaid bills at Maritim Hotel

Attorney General

Rama Valayden Jayarama Valayden, most commonly known as Rama Valayden is a Mauritian lawyer, social worker and politician. Early life and education He was born in 1963 in Stanley (Rose Hill) Rama Valayden attended primary school Notre Dame des Victoires RCA. ...

also alleged during a press conference that Cuttaree had not paid the Maritim Hotel after his lavish birthday party on June 24, 2001. Cuttaree denied these allegations.

2005 Air Mauritius Caisse Noire scandal

In 2005, Gérard Tyack (former financial director of

Air Mauritius Air Mauritius is the flag carrier airline of Mauritius. The airline is headquartered in Port Louis, Mauritius, with its Airline hub, hub at Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport. History Foundation The company was established on 14 J ...

) revealed that he had given money to Cuttaree from the

secret fund, also known as the scandalous Caisse Noire Affair. The money was meant for the newspaper of the

Mauritian Militant Movement The Mauritian Militant Movement (MMM; ) is a left-wing socialist political party in Mauritius. The party was founded by a group of students in the late 1960s. The MMM advocates a fairer society, without discrimination on the basis of social clas ...

(MMM), Le Nouveau Militant. During the cross examination of Tyack, he revealed that he had mentioned this transaction in his statement to the Economic Crime Office (ECO).

References

External links

Bio from WTO site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cuttaree, Jaya Krishna 1941 births 2018 deaths Ministers of foreign affairs of Mauritius Members of the National Assembly (Mauritius) Mauritian Hindus Mauritian scientists 20th-century Mauritian lawyers People from Plaines Wilhems District Mauritian Militant Movement politicians Grand Commanders of the Order of the Star and Key of the Indian Ocean Mauritian politicians of Indian descent