Chennai: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached properties worth Rs 1.26 crore linked to Tamil Nadu Fisheries and Animal Husbandry Minister Anitha Radhakrishnan under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). This action is part of an ongoing investigation into allegations of disproportionate assets and money laundering involving the senior DMK leader.
Anitha Radhakrishnan, 73, who was previously a minister in the AIADMK government under the late J. Jayalalithaa, shifted allegiance to the DMK following her demise. He currently serves as the MLA for Tiruchendur in the Thoothukudi district. This marks the second instance of the ED targeting his assets. On February 2, 2022, the agency attached 18 immovable properties worth approximately Rs 1 crore.
Case Background
The ED’s investigation stems from an FIR filed by the Tamil Nadu Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC). The FIR alleged that Radhakrishnan had amassed assets disproportionate to his known sources of income during his tenure between May 14, 2001, and March 31, 2006. According to the charge sheet filed by the DVAC, Radhakrishnan’s assets exceeded his income by Rs 2.07 crore.
The ED’s probe revealed that Radhakrishnan and his family members continued to possess and enjoy the proceeds of the alleged crimes. The agency stated that a portion of these assets had been laundered through various firms by means of cash deposits, layered transactions, and loans repaid in cash to obscure the origins of the funds.
Provisional Attachment Order
The attached properties include immovable assets located in Thoothukudi, Madurai, and Chennai. The ED stated that the illicit funds had been reinvested into acquiring these assets, further reinforcing the allegations of money laundering. The investigation also uncovered that after the initial check period, Radhakrishnan and his family generated an additional Rs 17.74 crore in proceeds of crime (POC), derived indirectly from properties attached by the ED in 2022. This latest action against Anitha Radhakrishnan is part of a broader crackdown by the ED on financial irregularities involving high-ranking members of the DMK government. Several other DMK leaders, including prominent ministers, have faced scrutiny and legal action in recent months.
ED locked DMK minister Anitha Radhakrishnan's properties pic.twitter.com/XNkdX4xy9n
— Saravanan (@Saranjournalist) January 23, 2025
Ponmudi and Senthil Balaji Cases
DMK Ministers K. Ponmudi and Senthil Balaji have also been under ED investigation. Ponmudi, along with his son Gautham Sigamani, faced allegations of money laundering and was briefly removed from the cabinet before being reinstated after securing bail from the Supreme Court. Senthil Balaji, similarly reinstated after obtaining bail, was implicated in a separate corruption case.
#JUSTIN | அமலாக்கத் துறை அலுவலகத்தில் கதிர் ஆனந்த் ஆஜர்#DMKMP | #KathirAnand | #ED | #EnforcementDirectorate pic.twitter.com/B4yNdZONGL
— PttvOnlinenews (@PttvNewsX) January 22, 2025
Durai Murugan and Kathir Anand
Senior DMK leader Durai Murugan and his son, Vellore MP Kathir Anand, are also under investigation. On January 3, 2025, the ED conducted extensive searches at Kingston Engineering College, owned by the Durai Murugan Educational Trust, and other properties linked to Anand. The raids, lasting over 44 hours, resulted in the seizure of Rs 2.74 crore in cash and hard disks. These searches were linked to a 2019 Lok Sabha election-related case in which Rs 11.48 crore in unaccounted cash was seized from Anand’s associate, Poonjolai Srinivasan.
Other High-Profile Cases
In May 2023, the ED provisionally attached assets worth Rs 36.3 crore and seized Rs 34.7 lakh from the Udhayanidhi Stalin Foundation, linked to DMK leader and Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin. Separately, properties worth Rs 55.3 crore belonging to DMK’s NRI wing functionary Jaffar Sadiq were attached in connection with a drug smuggling network. Sadiq was arrested after methamphetamine worth Rs 180 crore was seized in Tamil Nadu, with evidence pointing to his involvement in smuggling drugs worth Rs 2,000 crore to Sri Lanka.
The ED’s actions have stirred political controversy in Tamil Nadu. While the DMK has accused the agency of targeting its leaders for political purposes, the ED has maintained that its actions are based on substantial evidence. These developments come amidst Tamil Nadu’s ongoing economic challenges and rising concerns over governance and corruption.
The ED’s investigation into Anitha Radhakrishnan and other DMK leaders continues to uncover alleged financial irregularities and links to larger networks of corruption and money laundering. The agency’s actions, including the latest attachment of assets worth Rs 1.26 crore, signal its commitment to addressing these allegations comprehensively.
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