CHENNAI: The Madras High Court on Friday directed the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) to register a case, without delay, based on the information shared by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) regarding the alleged cash-for-jobs scam in the Municipal Administration and Water Supply (MAWS) Department headed by Minister KN Nehru. The court raised serious doubts and expressed concern over the state’s disinclination to register a case despite the source information shared with them three and a half months ago.
Reacting to the order, Nehru said that he will fight the case and prove that he has not done anything wrong.
Passing orders on a writ petition filed by AIADMK MP IS Inbadurai, a division bench of Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava and Justice G Arul Murugan on Friday held that once information discloses the commission of a cognisable offence, registration of an FIR is mandatory and cannot be deferred in the name of a prolonged preliminary inquiry.
“It is not a case where they have received a bare complaint which necessitated the state to conduct an inquiry through the vigilance department,” the court said.
Court takes cognisance of allegations of irregularities in recruitment for 2,538 posts
“It is a detailed source information provided by the ED with voluminous set of evidence prima facie disclosing a cognisable offence. When a preliminary inquiry ought to have been done within 14 days, the state is only finding ways and means to delay registering the case,” the court noted. As per the order, the ED, by a communication dated October 27, 2025, shared information under Section 66(2) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act along with voluminous records, after seizing incriminating materials during a search in a connected case. The court recorded that the materials prima facie disclosed large-scale irregularities in the recruitment for 2,538 posts in the MAWS department, including allegations that bribes ranging from Rs 25 lakh to Rs 35 lakh were collected per post.
The court also dismissed contentions by the advocate general that the original bank fraud case, based on which the ED conducted searches, was quashed and that the information shared may not be relevant. “Even though the cases involving bank fraud were quashed, that has nothing to do with the incriminating materials that were seized in respect of the recruitment made to the MAWS department,” the court noted.
The state contended that a preliminary inquiry was under way and that under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), such an inquiry was permissible before registration of an FIR. However, the bench observed that preliminary inquiry is not mandatory in all corruption cases and it cannot be used as a shield to indefinitely delay registration when detailed source information discloses cognisable offences. Referring to settled Supreme Court precedents, the court reiterated that a police officer cannot avoid the duty of registering an offence if a cognisable offence is disclosed and that reasonableness or credibility of information is not a condition precedent for registration. Accordingly, the bench directed the DVAC to forthwith register a case on the basis of the ED’s communication and conduct a detailed and expeditious investigation in accordance with law.
The court also dismissed a connected public interest litigation (PIL) petition filed by K Athinarayanan, holding that his bona fides were under serious cloud in view of pending criminal cases, and disposed of the MP’s petition with the above directions. Responding to the HC direction, Nehru said that he would legally contest the case and prove that no wrongdoing had been committed. Addressing the reporters at DMK headquarters Anna Arivalayam along with DMK’s organising secretary RS Bharathi, he said an FIR has been ordered by the court based on a PIL even as a detailed inquiry by the Tamil Nadu government is already under way.
“Even before the registration of the FIR, a detailed inquiry has been taking place. We have not committed any offence. We will approach the appropriate court and prove that we have done no wrong in this case as well,” Nehru added.
Meanwhile, RS Bharathi alleged that the move was politically motivated and aimed at weakening the DMK ahead of elections. Referring to a communication from the ED, he claimed that attempts were being made to dent the influence of the DMK and Chief Minister MK Stalin, and to obstruct Nehru’s election-related works. It may be noted that TNIE was the first to report on the ED’s letter to TN police alleging a cash-for-jobs scam in the selection of officers and staff to 2,538 posts in the MAWS department, in October last year. The details emerged when the ED was investigating a bank fraud case related to True Value Homes (TVH) linked to N Ravichandran, KN Nehru’s brother.
