Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswamy has the Madras High Court breathing down his neck in a case filed against the former by a DMK leader alleging large-scale corruption in awarding civil contracts by the Highways Department. The portfolio of Highways Department is held by the Chief Minister in addition to his other responsibilities.
Justice A D Jagdish Chandra of the Madras High Court on Wednesday asked the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) probing the charges against the Chief Minister to keep the court posted about the progress of the case on a daily basis.
The complaint of graft against Palaniswamy was filed by R S Bharati, the organising secretary of the DMK . The Court had asked the DVAC to probe the charges of corruption against Palaniswamy filed by Bharati on June 13.
The DVAC in its affidavit stated that it had held a preliminary investigation based on Bharati’s petition and found that there was no prima facie case against the Chief Minister. According to Bhatrati, Palaniswamy misused his position as a Minister while he was a member of the Jayalalithaa cabinet and now as the Chief Minister. He had awarded contracts for five road projects to his friends and close relatives thereby causing huge lose to the exchequer, alleged Bharati.
The widening of 70.2 km long Oddanchatram-Dharapuram-Avinashipalayam stretch into a four-lane facility has been sited by the DMK leader as a massive scam. “The original estimated project cost was Rs 713.34 crore, but subsequently it got escalated to Rs 1,515 crore including a cash grant of Rs 315 crore,” Bharati had stated in his petition.
He charged that the cost of the project would not exceed Rs 200 crore if it was calculated on the basis of market norms of Rs 2.2 crore for widening every kilometre. Similarly, the cost of widening the Tirunelveli-Kollam stretch of 45.64 km was pushed up from Rs 407.6 crore to Rs 900 crore and the contract was awarded to a close relation of the Chief Minister.
Though the DVAC had submitted the findings of the preliminary probe to the court, the DMK leader accused that the report had been diluted by the investigation agency to save theChief Minister.
Judge Chandra after hearing the lawyers of both Bharati and the DVAC, asked the latter to submit a detailed investigation report to the court by September 17 and also to keep the court informed about the progress of the case on a daily basis.
O Panneerselvam, the deputy Chief Minister is also under the scanner of the DVAC following the directive of the Madras High Court in a case of disproportionate asset filed against him by a DMK office-bearer.