CHENNAI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday launched searches in at least six locations in Chennai and one in Katpadi in Vellore district, linked to a money laundering case against S Pandian, former superintendent of Tamil Nadu’s Department of Environment, who is an who is an accused in a corruption case filed by the State Directorate of Vigilance and Anti- Corruption (DVAC) in FIR. .
In December 2020, DVAC had filed the case against Pandian after a surprise check at his office in Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board’s headquarters in Saidapet had yielded Rs 88,500 unaccounted cash.
Follow-up searches at his home in Chennai a month later yielded Rs 1.37 crore cash, 3.08 kg of gold, 3.34 kg of silver and 10.52 carat diamonds totalling Rs 1.25 crore then. DVAC had also seized documents of properties worth Rs 7 crore and other assets. His house in Pudukkottai district was also searched then. DVAC officials had then remarked that they needed currency counting machines to help assess the quantum of cash seized during the search. He was suspended soon after.
Based on this DVAC FIR, ED has now registered a PMLA case and started investigations. Sources said that six locations in Chennai including those linked to Pandian and a few companies in Koyambedu and Ashok Nagar were searched. Places owned by a businessperson in Katpadi were also searched in this regard.
The primary allegations against Pandian and other accomplices were collection of bribes to facilitate environmental clearances for projects including those in the real estate and industries. Sources said that ED has collected evidence regarding the link between officials and entities in different government departments facilitating corruption in getting approvals of projects. However, no official statement has been issued by the agency as yet.
DVAC’s action against Pandian in 2020 and a filing of one more case after the DMK came to power in 2021 had prompted a group of activists including former Madras High Court Justice (retd) D Hariparanthaman and singer TM Krishna to congratulate the agency in a letter, alleging that he was responsible for disappearance of 15,000 acres of Ennore wetlands and backwaters of Kosasthalaiyar river from the official coastal zone regulation maps.
“Considering the scale and magnitude of investments and the extent of water and land converted into real estate, the use of illegal and unapproved maps to grant clearances must be investigated especially since it involves Pandian as a key player,” the letter had then said.
(With inputs from Rajalakshmi Sampath in Vellore.)