VELLORE: Days after the seizure of huge amount of cash from the residence of DMK treasurer Durai Murugan and a few men allegedly linked to him, the police have booked his son and DMK candidate for Vellore Lok Sabha constituency DM Kathir Anand for submitting false affidavit and attempting to bribe voters.
The case was filed by the Katpadi Police following a complaint lodged by the Nodal Officer, Election Expenditure, Vellore.
“Kathir Anand is booked under section 125 A (filing false affidavit) of Representation of People Act following a complaint lodged by the Nodal Officer, Election Expenditure, Vellore, in the Katpadi police station,” a senior Police officer told Express.
While Pooncholai Seenivasan, a local functionary of DMK in Katpadi and his brother-in-law Damodaran were slapped with a case under section 171 (E) (punishment for bribery) r/w 171 (B) (ii) (whoever accepts either for himself or for any other person any gratification as a reward for exercising any such right or for inducing or attempting to induce any other person to exercise any such (electoral) right; commits the offence of bribery)of Indian Penal Code (IPC), he added.
The duo was booked by the police for stacking money for bribing the voters ahead of the April 18 general elections.
The officer stated the FIR was filed after getting the opinion of the Judicial Magistrate of Katpadi. He sought a few clarifications on Tuesday when the Police officers approached him.
The IT department sleuths raided the residence of Durai Murugan located at Gandhi Nagar in Katpadi on March 29 and 30, seizing Rs. 10 lakh unaccounted cash. Similar raids were conducted at six places on April 1. As much as 11.53 crore cash was seized from a cement godown owned by DMK local functionary Pooncholai Seenivasan. The taxmen also scanned the residence of Damodaran who is Seenivasan's brother-in-law.
They both were also booked by the Police.
Speculations have been rife since Tuesday over the move to book Kathir Anandi for alleged bribery and stacking cash to distribute ahead of the crucial polls. There were talks of possibilities of his disqualification from contesting the polls, without disturbing the election process.
The IT raids on the premises of Durai Murugan, who is the Deputy Leader of Opposition in Tamil Nadu Assembly, and a few close aides generated much heat in the State where opposing political leaders belonging to DMK and AIADMK have already in a mudslinging match during the ongoing campaign.
The DMK president MK Stalin had challenged the IT whether it had the guts to raid the residence Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami if gave a written complaint.
He termed the raids an attempt to trouble the party.