Chennai: Months after raids and registering cases, the DVAC on Monday filed chargesheets in the disproportionate assets cases against two former AIADMK ministers, KP Anbalagan and C Vijayabhaskar. This is the first time that the Vigilance Directorate had taken corruption cases against
prominent AIADMK leaders to the next stage for trial.
Both were high-profile ministers in the EPS cabinet. While Anbalagan was a former Higher Education Minister and is currently a legislator from the Palacode constituency, Vijayabhaskar held the Health and Family Welfare portfolio and represents Viralimalai in the assembly. The chargesheets were filed after obtaining the necessary sanction from the Speaker to proceed against them. The cases were registered under the Prevention of Corruption Act (1988) and provisions of IPC. Vijayabhaskar is also an accused in the Gutkha scam being probed by the CBI.
The DMK had in its election manifesto pledged to bring to book the AIADMK ministers, who had indulged in corruption and amassed massive wealth. Soon after the DMK returned to power in May 2021, vigilance raids were carried out on the premises and business establishments of a few AIADMK ministers starting with SP Velumani, MR Vijayabhaskar, P Thangamani and KC Veeramani besides the duo. All of them are with the AIADMK led by EPS. But, since there was no progress, the government also faced criticism from anti-corruption activists for being slack in pursuing the cases.
Interestingly, the chargesheets were filed on a day when the AIADMK took out a procession to the Raj Bhavan and submitted a representation to Governor RN Ravi to take action on the corruption charges against the DMK government and the hooch tragedy that claimed 22 lives in Chengalpattu and Villupuram districts. And the previous day, the BJP had submitted a memorandum to the Governor, seeking the removal of Senthil Balaji, Minister for Prohibition and Excise and 'Gingee' Masthan, Minister for Minority Welfare over the hooch tragedy.
In the case of Anbalagan, a two-time minister in the AIADMK government with a long stint in the Higher Education department, the DVAC filed a 10,000-page chargesheet before the Chief Judicial Magistrate Court in Dharmapuri. The DVAC had initially pegged the disproportionate assets held by him and his family at Rs 11.32 crore but had later revised it to Rs 45.20 crore. Significantly, the filing of chargesheet comes 10 months after Madras High Court directed to expedite it without delay.
During the investigation against Anbalagan, his wife, A Malliga, and sons A Sasimohan and Chandramohan, searches were conducted at 58 places resulting in the seizure of incriminating documents. According to the DVAC, the former minister was found to have acquired assets disproportionate to his known sources of income and the ill-gotten money was routed through a trust named Saraswathi Pachiappan Educational and Charitable Trust.
The chargesheet against Vijayabhaskar and his wife Ramya was filed before the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Pudukottai, for massing assets to the tune of Rs 35.79 crore. This followed a case registered in October 2021 and searches carried out at 56 locations. According to the DVAC, investigations revealed that the former minister had acquired movable and immovable assets besides investing in Rasi Blue Metal and Rasi Enterprises besides machinery, vehicles and ornaments.
Both Anbalagan and Vijayabhaskar have termed the raids and registration of cases as political vendetta and put up a brave face saying they would face the cases legally. With many more former AIADMK ministers under the vigilance radar, more chargesheets might be filed in the days to come to blunt the opposition's attempt to rake up corruption charges. The Central Crime Branch in Salem had already registered a case against EPS for non-disclosure of assets in his election affidavit.
