CHENNAI: Former school education minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi appeared before the Central Crime Branch (CCB) in Chennai on Friday morning for an inquiry in a Rs 100-crore fraud case in connection with providing government approvals for private schools. The inquiry lasted for nearly eight hours.
Anbil Mahesh was summoned by the CCB for an appearance on Friday, after his name was added to the case on Wednesday, followed by searches on premises linked to him. A press note from the police said that Anbil Mahesh was questioned about his alleged links with the two accused — B T Arasakumar and Muthukumar — his interactions with private school managements, and the alleged collection of “party fund” from school managements.
Speaking to the media after the inquiry, Mahesh said, “The police had prepared a total of 295 questions, of which I answered 246 patiently and to the best of my knowledge. I remained patient because this is an entirely false case, and I am confident about that. They have asked me to come again next week to answer the remaining questions, and I will certainly appear and answer them.”
Mahesh said the police seized 118 documents, but they were not relevant to this case. The documents include files and other reports regarding the school education department that he had gathered during his tenure as minister and some of them are reports which he had presented during the Assembly sessions.
When asked about the alleged cash transactions between him and the two prime accused, he said, “I have told the police that they should ask the two of them, as I am not aware of this.”