COIMBATORE: The Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) in its FIR filed against former AIADMK minister SP Velumani and his associates, noted that Rs 810.83 crore worth of tenders in Greater Chennai Corporation and Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation were awarded to companies closely associated with Velumani between 2014 and 2018, in violation of norms. Velumani, his brother P Anbarasan, and several company owners have been booked under sections of the Indian Penal Code and Prevention of Corruptions Act, 1988
In the First Information Report (FIR) registered on Monday, the DVAC said that complaints regarding the violations were received from DMK MP RS Bharathi and Arappor Iyakkam convenor V Jayaraman in 2018. A preliminary inquiry was conducted and the report was forwarded to the government and a copy submitted to the Madras High Court. “There is prima facie material to show that Velumani and unidentified officials of GCC and CCMC entered into criminal conspiracy during 2014-18, in injudiciously awarding tenders for laying bus route road, building stormwater drain, outsourcing Health department services and certain other contract works, by violating the procedure established by law and thereby committed cheating and criminal misappropriation of public money amounting to several crores of rupees,” the FIR said.
When a writ petition regarding the matter came up for hearing earlier, the Madras HC directed that the State should spare no efforts in getting to the bottom of the matter and proceed against those found guilty. “Conduct investigation in the light of the Comptroller and Auditor General report of 2016, which highlighted that injudicious awarding of tenders in a certain set of works executed by the Greater Chennai Corporation during 2014-18, resulted in huge loss to the government,” the court had ordered.
Investigation revealed that Velumani allegedly abused his official position during awarding of work tenders in connivance with unidentified officials of the GCC and CCMC, providing undue pecuniary favour to the accused companies or firms. “The GCC had allotted tenders worth total Rs 464.02 crore to the accused companies, and the CCMC gave them tenders worth Rs 346.81 crore,” the FIR read. The report adds that Municipal Corporation officials violated the Tamil Nadu Transparency in Tenders Act, 1998, Rule 31 of the Tamil Nadu Transparency in Tender Rules, 2012, and guidelines of Central Vigilance Commission, at directions of Velumani. “Accused bidders quoted ‘abnormally high’ , ‘abnormally low’ prices for items than the prescribed rates. They reduced the prices of items which were quoted ‘abnormally low’ and retained prices of items that were quoted as ‘abnormally high’,” FIR said.