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Vigilance raids premises linked to former AIADMK minister
Leader of Opposition Edappadi Palaniswami took to Twitter to condemn the raids. “The DMK cannot take the AIADMK head on politically so they are resorting to such tactics,” Palaniswami said.
The Directorate of Vigilance and Anti Corruption (DVAC) on Friday conducted searches at 52 locations, across Tamil Nadu, linked to All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam’s (AIADMK) former food minister R Kamaraj and his associates.
As per the agency, the minister has been accused of amassing disproportionate assets worth ₹58.44 crore to known sources of income between 2015 and 2021, when the party was in government. Kamaraj, now a sitting MLA from Nannilam assembly constituency, is the sixth former minister from the AIADMK to be raided.
The six accused in the case also include 62-year-old Kamaraj’s two sons who are doctors — Dr M K Eniyan ,32, and Dr K Inban ,30.
Besides six places in Chennai, officials also searched Kamaraj’s residence in Thiruvarur district. Protesting against the raids, the AIADMK cadre gathered outside his residence and raised slogans against the DVAC officials and the ruling DMK government.
Leader of Opposition Edappadi Palaniswami took to Twitter to condemn the raids. “The DMK cannot take the AIADMK head on politically so they are resorting to such tactics,” Palaniswami said.
After the DMK came to power, the DVAC filed cases of disproportionate assets against five other former AIADMK ministers — S P Velumani (two cases against the ex-municipal administration minister), K P Anbazhagan (education), C Vijayabhaskar (health),M R Vijayabhaskar (transport) and P Thangamani (electricity).
The DVAC has filed a first information report (FIR) against Kamaraj for the period between May 23, 2011 and May 6, 2021, when he was the minister for food and civil supplies, charging him with activities abusing his official position. He had held additional charge as minister of Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) for a year from 2015.
“He intentionally enriched himself by illicitly acquiring assets in his name, in the name of his family members and his close associates, which are disproportionate to the known sources of income,” the FIR stated.
Kamaraj, was in possession of pecuniary resources and properties in the form of buildings, agriculture lands, gold jewels, motor vehicle, fixed deposits, LIC policies, shares and investments in companies, bank balance to the tune of ₹1,39,54,290 ( ₹13.95 million) in his name and in the name of his family members in the beginning of the check period, the FIR read.
During the check period all the six accused “entered into a criminal conspiracy with intention to legitimize ill-gotten wealth and decided to purchase a Private Limited Company in the name and style of NARC Hotel Private Limited from one K R Annamalai Chettiyar and his associates in Thanjavur district.
The value of assets acquired by Kamaraj and in the name of his two sons with the help of other three accused during the check period is ₹58,84,50,749 ( ₹588.45 million).
The case was registered in Thiruvarur under Sections 120( B ) (party to a criminal conspiracy for serious offence) of the Indian Penal Code and 13(2) r/w 13 (11) (e) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. The case was registered in Thiruvarur.
DVAC officials seized an amount of ₹.41,06,000, unaccounted cash of ₹1,550,000, gold ornaments weighing about 963 sovereigns, silver weighing about 23,960 grams, bank locker key, an i-Phone, computer, a pen drive, hard discs and other incriminating documents. The case is still under investigation.
After the raids concluded, Kamaraj spoke to reporters saying that the DMK government is not setting a good precedent. “Nothing has been seized from my house,” Kamaraj said amidst applause from AIADMK cadre. “My two sons are doctors. They have taken loans to build their hospital. I have worked hard in public life to come up.”
