TN: Raids, Enquiries at Snail's Pace, DVAC Needs More Independence

The directorate of vigilance and anti-corruption (DVAC) has raided residences and places of 5 former ministers from the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) in the last 7 months after the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) came to power.

Another former minister KT Rajendra Bhalaji, is on the run following the dismissal of a request for anticipatory bail on December 18 in a financial fraud case. The state police have issued a look out notice following the minister’s disappearance fearing arrest.

The AIADMK has been alleging political vendetta, while the DMK claims to act on complaints received and fulfilling its poll promise of putting the corrupt behind the bars. Though several raids have taken place in the past 25 years during the regimes of both DMK and AIADMK, only a few cases reach the stage of conviction, while many die down with time.

Speedy enquiry and follow up actions have been lacking on cases of disproportionate assets (DA), leading to allegations of political vendetta and lethargy of successive governments.

FIFTH MINISTER ON THE RADAR

The first DVAC raid after the DMK assumed power earlier in May this year was on former transport minister MR Vijayabhaskar. Soon the DVAC knocked the doors of four of his former cabinet colleagues. Former electricity minister P Thangamani is the latest to join the list on December 15.

Former municipal administration minister SP Velumani, former commercial taxes minister KC Veeramani and former health minister C Vijayabaskar are the others to be booked by the DVAC.

Seventy places were raided in Tamil Nadu while two places in Karnataka and one place in Andhra Pradesh completed the list of raided places relating to the former minister. He along with his family members have been accused of acquiring assets worth Rs 4.85 crore in excess of his known income.

The FIR filed accuses the former minister of investing huge amounts of money in crypto assets. Sleuths recovered Rs 2.87 crore in cash and 1.13 kg of gold during the raid.

‘LETHARGY IN ENQUIRY AND TRIAL’

The pace of enquiry on the DA cases has remained slow historically in the state. The allegations of political vendetta cannot be ruled out completely given the intense rivalry between DMK and AIADMK.

The final judgement on the DA case against former chief minister late J Jayalalitha took almost 21 years to be pronounced. She was the first former chief minister to be arrested in a DA case in 1996.

The arrest of former chief minister late M Karunanidhi in 2001 following regime change was sensational on many accounts.

Cases were filed by DVAC in 2012 following another regime change against several DMK leaders, few of whom are now ministers in the cabinet of M K Stalin. There are directions from the Supreme Court on the speedy trial of DA cases, but delay has become a normality in such cases.

Few cases have reached the final stage with conviction being a rarity. Apart from former CM J Jayalalitha and her aide VK Sasikala not many top brass leaders have been punished.

The Arappor Iyakkam, an anti-corruption body, has been publishing details of corruption charges against public servants with details collected through the right to information (RTI) act. But, the progress of enquiry has not been satisfactory, the convenor of the organisation Jayaram Venkatesan said.

“There should be a daily trial on cases against the elected representatives and completed within one year. Unfortunately such things are not happening,” he said.

The DVAC goes through the routine process of conducting preliminary and detailed enquiry, which delays the filing of a regular FIR, the Arappor Iyakkam has alleged. “This helps in delaying the whole process which is not serving the intended purpose of blowing out the DA cases,” Jayaram said.

The organisation has filed 14 complaints against former AIADMK ministers including the former deputy chief minister O Panneer Selvam.

‘AMENDMENT REGRESSIVE’

The amendment made to the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 in the year 2018 by the union government has been termed regressive by the organisations fighting corruption. “The investigating agency has to obtain permission from the government before acting on the complaints for which the government can take 4 months to respond,” Jayaram says.

This provision makes ways for delays in registering the complaint and proceeding with the preliminary and detailed enquiry before proceeding to the final stage by the DVAC.

“Filing an FIR may take even a year as per the amendment, which is regressive and plays in favour of the corrupt. The special courts must conduct the trial everyday and finish the case in one year. That is also not happening,” Jayaram said.

In the 14 complaints filed by the Arappor Iyakkam, despite prima facie evidence of cognisable offence, only 2 cases have been filed.

“The delay in procedure is also attributed to the lack of resources and the dependence of anti corruption agencies on the respective government. Cases are filed after several years of filing the complaint. This has to change for better progress in DA cases,” Jayarams said.

FORMER MINISTER ON THE RUN

Another former minister, KT Rajendra Bhalaji is still hiding, even as the Tamil Nadu police has formed 6 special teams to nab in a financial fraud case. He is being wanted by the police for enquiring about the misappropriation of funds of about Rs 3 crore in Aavin, under the ministry of milk and dairy development.

Another case of his aides and family members collecting money on fake promises of providing jobs in Aavin is also pending against him. The police have frozen 6 bank accounts as well.