The Central Crime Branch (CCB) on Wednesday raided the residence and other premises linked to DMK leader and former minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi as part of an ongoing probe into an alleged Rs 100-crore private school approval fraud case.
According to reports, searches were conducted at six locations across Chennai and Tiruchirappalli.
During the raids, investigating teams seized representations submitted to government offices, files related to private school approvals, financial records, computers, mobile phones and hard drives.
The CCB had registered a case against Anbil Mahesh under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act following an examination of departmental records, financial transactions and electronic evidence linked to his tenure as School Education Minister.
The case stems from allegations that the managements of several private schools were defrauded through false promises of securing permanent recognition, upgradation, Directorate of Town and Country Planning (DTCP) clearances and other government approvals.
Investigators have so far examined 177 private schools and questioned more than 250 people, including officials of the School Education Department.
In June, the CCB arrested B.T. Arasakumar, a resident of Saligram, for allegedly collecting more than Rs 100 crore from school managements. Police have frozen 20 bank accounts linked to Arasakumar and his family, as well as 29 accounts linked to another accused, Muthukumar.
‘Political vendetta’
Former Chief Minister M.K. Stalin described the raids as a “blatant act of political vendetta” by the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) government.
“In frustration over being unable to fix problems shaking the state, the incompetent TVK government has launched the weapon of raids to divert people’s attention,” Stalin said in a post on X.
He also accused the government of inaction, saying Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay was in London while the state was grappling with widespread issues.
