New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate has cranked up the pressure on Tamil Nadu Minister K.N.Nehru, alleging widespread bribery in lieu of transfers and postings done through his close associates in the municipal administration and water supply (MAWS) department.
Last week, it alleged that funds amounting to Rs 365 crore, including those from the transfer and posting bribes, were laundered by Nehru and his associates. It has also submitted, among other things, a list of 340 officers recovered from the phone of Kavi Prasad, one of Nehru’s close associates.
In the nearly 100-page dossier with almost an equal number of photographs of WhatsApp chats of Nehru’s two close associates, who allegedly handled the bribe collection in some districts and managed departmental work on his behalf.
The written communication to the Tamil Nadu chief secretary, the Director General of Police (DGP), and the Chief of the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) is the third such missive, along with dossiers containing the ED’s findings of corruption in the department.
In October, the ED sent a dossier listing 150 candidates who allegedly got jobs by paying a bribe of Rs 25 to Rs 35 lakh each. Another dossier followed in December, alleging that Nehru and his associates collected bribes amounting to Rs 1,020 crore through government contracts, at rates ranging from 7.5 percent to 15 percent.
The agency has sought FIRs from the DVAC against Nehru and other officials for irregularities in the MAWS department. So far, the M K Stalin-led Tamil Nadu government has ordered inquiries to look into the earlier two communications seeking registration of cases. These inquiries are yet to be converted into FIRs, sources in the ED said.
ThePrint reached Nehru via calls and message for his comment on the fresh allegations by the central agency. This article will be updated as and when a response is received. In December, he had denied the ED charges, alleging that he was being continuously targeted by the ED and added that he would legally face the charges.
Also Read: ED attaches Al-Falah, the Faridabad university under Red Fort blast shadow
‘Incriminating’ materials
All three ED communications can be traced back to raids against Nehru and his son Arun in the case of an alleged bank fraud involving a group company of Nehru’s brother N. Ravichandran in April last year.
An FIR by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against Trudeom EPC India, a firm linked to True Value Homes of Ravichandran, and a subsequent charge sheet were later quashed by the Madras High Court on the grounds of a settlement between the firms and the Indian Overseas Bank. Subsequently, the ED’s Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) was disposed of on the grounds of the absence of a predicate offence.
A predicate offence is a criminal offence investigated by law enforcement or investigating agencies that serves as the basis for a money laundering investigation under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.
The searches were conducted after an ECIR was lodged based on a case of alleged bank loan diversion by a company run by the Nehru family, sources aware of the matter said. The case was registered by the CBI in December 2021.
In its latest communication, the ED documented the list of incriminating evidence recovered from the digital devices seized during raids in April last year, stating that they “clearly show that there were many instances of bribes being collected for the transfer and posting of government officers/ engineers in MAWS.”
The ED submitted 102 photos of WhatsApp chats, confirmation of the collection of bribes, names of officers, and transfer orders on the phones of Nehru’s close associates D. Ramesh and Prasad.
According to the ED sources, Prasad worked on Nehru’s behalf, including on departmental work, and that both official and informal communication to Nehru went through him. Ramesh. an employee of Nehru’s brother Ravichandran, allegedly collects bribes in some districts, including Coimbatore, for transfers and postings, they said.
“This detailed report consisting of all the evidence [about 102 photos of WhatsApp chats, bribe collection confirmations, names of officers, transfer orders found in the phone of private persons who are close associates of Nehru, etc.] shows collection of bribes ranging from Rs 7 lakh to Rs 1 crore [depending upon the post/ place of posting] from various officers/engineers by the close associates of Nehru, minister, MAWS,” the agency alleged in its communication to the chief secretary, the DGP and the DVAC director.
“This report provides direct evidence of bribe collection in transfers and postings of officers/ engineers of MAWS. The details of about 340 officers/engineers whose transfer/posting orders were found in the phone of the close associates of Nehru are also provided. It also provides direct evidence of money laundering by Nehru and his family/ close associates amounting to Rs 365.87 crore.”
Providing a breakdown of the laundering money, the ED submitted that a majority of the funds were routed into real estate projects of Nehru’s brother firm True Value Homes. The firm recouped funds amounting to Rs 223.65 crore, followed by more than Rs 54 crore in benami assets and Rs 44 crore in the acquisition of properties abroad, it added.
The agency alleged that it found discussions regarding the purchase of several high-value properties, including a hotel for Rs 50 crore, a 34-acre property in the US, and another 3.23-acre property in the US for Rs 70 crore.
However, it said that these details are beyond the Rs 365.87 identified as funds laundered allegedly by Nehru and his family members.
The DVAC, it reiterated, did not register FIRs despite the previous two communications it sent and has limited them to a preliminary enquiry on the “pretext of gathering evidence.”
“It may be noted that PE is registered where there is no evidence provided by the complainant. Where evidence is provided by another investigating agency, the police have to investigate the offence only after registration of FIR,” the ED asserted.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
Also Read: How a bulletproof SUV led Haryana STF to ‘Godara-Brar gang operatives’ involved in US killings