Officials of Tamil Nadu’s Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) carried out searches at 28 locations linked to former All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) minister KC Veeramani on charges of assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.
Veeramani is the third AIADMK leader to face a corruption probe after MK Stalin-led Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) government came to power in May this year. Veeramani hasn’t spoken on the corruption charges levelled against him but his supporters promptly gathered outside his house to protest the raids. His party also issued a statement, complaining that the raids were prompted by “political vendetta”.
According to Hindustan Times report, the First Information Report (FIR) registered by DVAC on Wednesday said Veeramani was “involved in corrupt activities” and acquired assets disproportionate to his income by 654 per cent between 2016 and 2021 when he was a minister of commercial taxes in the AIADMK government.
Arappor Iyakkam, a non-profit which first filed a complaint against Veeramani, alleged that the AIADMK leader started indulging in corruption in 2011 when he first became a minister in the J Jayalalithaa government and oversaw departments of school education and Tamil culture apart from holding additional charge as health minister.
