No ink of truth in ED's papers, says KN Nehru over 252-page proof

TIRUCHY: Municipal Administration Minister and DMK principal secretary KN Nehru on Monday dismissed the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) recommendation to register a case against him, asserting that there was “nothing in the allegations” and that he was prepared to face any inquiry.

There is nothing in the case; I will see to it and prove myself clean, the minister said.

The ED has accused Nehru of corruption in awarding tenders of the Municipal Administration and Water Supply (MAWS) Department. It has asked the Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary and the DGP to register a case and has submitted a 252-page report outlining its charges.

Responding to reporters in Tiruchy, where he had arrived to attend a video-conference of district secretaries chaired by Chief Minister and DMK president MK Stalin, Nehru said he would prove himself clean.

The minister, appearing visibly tense, declined to take further questions and left the venue in haste.

The minister tried to play down the significance of the ED's letter to the Chief Secretary, DGP and the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption, alleging large-scale manipulation of tenders in the MAWS department, estimating bribes of at least Rs 1,020 crore.

The letter, sent on December 3 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, is based on a 258-page dossier compiled from digital evidence reportedly retrieved during searches carried out in April.

This is the second letter from ED to the government seeking police action against MAWS officials and the minister in the last two months. In the earlier letter, it was alleged that the minister and officials were involved in a cash-for-jobs scam in the appointment of staff in the department.

ED states that contractors executing MAWS works allegedly paid 7.5 to 10 per cent of contract value to associates of KN Nehru, describing several payments as “party fund”.

According to the ED, WhatsApp chats, messages, and calculation sheets recovered from the phones of the minister’s associates indicate that tenders were manipulated or pre-decided to benefit specific contractors. This material, the ED said, represents only the “tip of the iceberg.”

The central agency said preliminary tracing of the suspected proceeds of crime suggested that the money was moved through hawala channels within and outside India. The ED requested the Tamil Nadu police to register an FIR and begin an investigation, warning that failure to do so would amount to “knowingly assisting the accused in the collection of bribes”.