CHENNAI: Two days after the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) raided the premises linked to State Minister for Panchayat Raj and Rural Development and senior DMK leader I Periyasamy, the central agency on Monday said that it has seized documents related to alleged 'paper companies’ from the minister's textile company.
Paper companies are firms that exist only on paper, which are often created to evade tax and/or launder ill-gotten wealth, said sources.
The agency said it also found documents related to properties and investment from the houses of his son and MLA IP Senthilkumar, and daughter Indra.
Periyasamy and his younger son Prabhu are directors of Irulappa Mills India Pvt Ltd. Enforcement officials said they are currently verifying the accounts of these companies, and are also analysing the content of the digital devices that were seized during the searches.
The ED Chennai zonal office had carried out search operations across multiple locations in Dindigul and Chennai on Saturday. The raids had targeted premises connected to Periyasamy, his son Senthil Kumar, who is the sitting MLA of Palani, and associated individuals, the agency said in an official statement.
The ED investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, stems from a disproportionate assets case registered by Tamil Nadu's Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) against Periyasamy and his family. The DVAC chargesheet, alleging possession of disproportionate assets approximately worth Rs 2 crore, forms the scheduled offence triggering the PMLA inquiry.
The chargesheet alleges that these assets were amassed during Periyasamy's tenure as Minister for Revenue and Prisons between 2006 and 2011.
While the special court in Dindigul had earlier discharged Periyasamy and family in this case, the Madras High Court overturned that decision in April 2025. The High Court then directed the court to proceed with the trial and expedite its completion. However, in a significant development on Monday, the Supreme Court of India stayed the trial proceedings before the Dindigul special court.