Chennai: Sleuths of the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) on Saturday conducted simultaneous searches at the official bungalow and other premises of Tamil Nadu Rural Development Minister I Periyasamy, his legislator-son I P Senthilkumar and daughter Indira at multiple locations including Chennai and Dindigul.
Paramilitary Deployed During Searches
Paramilitary force guards positioned themselves at the Minister’s official residence in Chennai and house in his native Dindigul district in south Tamil Nadu since early morning to facilitate the searches by the ED officers in a suspected money laundering case.
Third DMK Minister Under ED Lens
Periyasamy, a veteran DMK leader, is the third Tamil Nadu Minister to be subjected to searches by the ED in the last four years. While the ED had arrested Senthilbalaji, a key member of he M K Stalin Cabinet in 2023 in a suspected money laundering case, they had also searched the premises of K Ponmudy and let him off after obtaining statements. Both Senthilbalaji and Ponmudy had in April quit from the Cabinet under judicial fire.
At the time of filing this report in the evening, the agency was yet to issue an official announcement about what triggered the searches.
Assembly Official Files Police Complaint
Meanwhile, the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly Deputy Secretary lodged a complaint with the Chennai Police alleging that ED officers had trespassed into the MLA Hostel premises and broken open the door of the legislator’s room (Senthilkumar) on the seventh floor without permission for conducting searches.
Disproportionate Assets Case Revived
Earlier in April, the Madras High Court had reversed the discharge the Periyasamy and his family members in a disproportionate assets case registered in 2012.
The case was registered by the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption accusing the Minister and his family of having amassed wealth to the tune of Rs 2.01 crore which was disproportionate to their known sources of income between 2006 and 2010, when Periyasamy served as Minister for Revenue and Prisons in the M Karunanidhi cabinet.
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The accused were discharged by the Chief Judicial Magistrate in 2018. The DVAC had appealed against this leading to the High Court directing the Minister and others to face trial in the case.
