CHENNAI: A man named as the sixth accused in the alleged private school recognition scam surrendered before a special court in Chennai on Wednesday and was remanded to judicial custody until November 25.
Saravanan, who worked as a driver for former DMDK MLA V Muthukumar, appeared before Judge L S Sathiyamurthy of the Special Court for cases under the Prevention of Corruption Act. The judge ordered that he be lodged in Puzhal Central Prison. He had been absconding since the Chennai Central Crime Branch (CCB) registered the case.
Investigators allege that money was collected from private schools during the previous DMK regime on the promise of securing permanent recognition and other approvals. The CCB registered the case following a complaint alleging such collections. During former school education minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi's bail hearing, the prosecution alleged that Muthukumar collected money from schools and handed it over to Saravanan, who then allegedly transported it to the former minister's residence.
Both Muthukumar and Saravanan are accused in the case and have not been convicted. The special court rejected Anbil Mahesh's bail plea on Tuesday, observing that the materials available on record indicated a prima facie case against him. The prosecution has estimated that the alleged scam could involve Rs 400 crore, although investigators have so far traced Rs 17.26 crore, according to PTI.
Anbil Mahesh has approached the Madras High Court challenging the special court's order. On Wednesday, his counsel, senior advocate P Wilson, mentioned the plea before Justice V Lakshminarayanan, who indicated that it could be taken up on Thursday, subject to completion of the Registry's numbering formalities.
(with inputs from media organisations)