A criminal case has been booked against the ousted AIADMK Leader TTV Dinakaran and others, by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), in connection with the Election Commission bribery case.
After taking cognisance of a Delhi police FIR in the matter, officials said the central probe agency, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) has registered a criminal case. The officials further said, that the agency will investigate the possible “proceeds of crime”, as part of its authorization, under the anti-money laundering law and soon will issue summonses to the accused.
Recently, a meeting of the ED and Delhi police officials had taken place, and a few more such meetings are expected be held to take the investigation further, after the central probe agency registers a separate case. Dinakaran and his close friend Mallikarjuna, were sent to Tihar jail, till May 15 by a court here, in New Delhi, after the police stated that the accused were not needed for custodial interrogation.
After four days of questioning by the Delhi police, Dinakaran was arrested on April 25 for allegedly attempting to bribe an unidentified EC official to get the undivided AIADMK’s “Two Leaves” election symbol for his faction, for the RK Nagar by-election. The election was however, later canceled by the Election Commission. The middle man, Sukesh Chandrasekhar was the first man to get arrested on April 16, from a five star hotel. Sukesh had struck a deal for Rs 50 crore to help the faction keep the “two leaves” symbol. The EC had frozen the AIADMK’s “Two Leaves” symbol after two factions led by Sasikala and former chief minister O Panneerselvam staked claim to it.
Dinakaran had been accused of allegedly arranging the amount from undisclosed sources and getting it transferred from Chennai to Delhi through illegal channels. The court, on April 26, remanded the AIADMK leader and Mallikarjuna to a five-day custody. The Delhi Police, further said, it needed to scoop out the money trail and the entire conspiracy in the case.
Mallikarjuna had been accompanying the AIADMK leader, everywhere ever since the arrest of alleged middleman. Mallikarjuna was arrested for facilitating the alleged Rs 50-crore deal between Dhinakaran and Chandrasekar. The middle man, Chandrasekhar, is in judicial custody till May 12.
SUPRAJA
