Income Tax sleuths are conducting searches in 40-plus locations linked to Tamil Nadu Public Works Department (PWD) minister EV Velu. The searches are also conducted at his residences in Chennai and Tiruvannamalai, educational and offices owned by his family, a leading real estate firm and a popular star hotel linked to Velu.
The Income Tax sleuths got into the residences of Velu in Chennai and Tiruvannamalai early morning on Friday. The raids are the fallout of alleged tax evasion by Velu and his family-run educational institutions and business firms. Central security personnel have been deployed in the places where the searches are being conducted.
Velu is one of the DMK heavyweights who is considered close to MK Stalin and his family. Velu, a staunch follower of MGR, defected to the DMK in 1997, after falling out with Jayalalithaa. Velu was elected from the Thandrampattu in Tiruvannamalai district in 1984, 2001, 2006, 2011 and 2016. He served as the minister for food under M Karunanidhi between 2006 and 2011. Velu later in 2021 contested from Tiruvannamalai and won to become a minister for PWD.
Velu is the fourth senior DMK heavyweight to be raided by central agencies in the past few months after V Senthil Balaji, K Ponmudy, and Arakkonam MP S Jagathrakshakan. Senthil Balaji is now lodged in Puzhal prison in a PMLA case registered by the Enforcement Directorate(ED). Ponmudy was subjected to several rounds of investigation by the ED. Jagathrakshakan was raided by the IT for more than a week. Jagath, a money bag of the DMK owns several educational institutions, including medical and dental colleges.