Cops hunt for two disqualified MLAs

Hours after they raised serious corruption allegations against Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami, two dissident AIADMK leaders, now in the rebel camp, were slapped with a case for allegedly assaulting two policemen on Thursday.

The Fort police registered the FIR against P Vetrivel and Thanga Tamilselvan, MLAs who were disqualified after moving to the rebel camp led by RK Nagar legislator TTV Dinakaran, on Thursday evening. They then initiated a major manhunt throughout the night, intensifying vehicle check and posting police teams at their residences. “But both remain untraceable, with their phones switched off,” sources said.  

On Thursday, Vetrivel and Thanga Tamilselvan had come to the secretariat to meet the media and release documents, which, they claimed, proved Chief Minister Palaniswami’s role in Rs 1,500 crore corruption in awarding road work contracts. 

Read more: Vetrivel charges CM’s family with corruption in road contracts

However, maintaining that they were no longer legislators, the police there had tried to prevent them from interacting with the media at the designated place inside the secretariat premises. But after a quarrel, they spoke to the press and released the documents. 

Later in the evening, Fort police registered cases against them for allegedly preventing public servants from doing their duty and also threatening the personnel. 

According to the rebels, contracts were awarded to companies run by the chief minister’s family, including his son Mithun’s father-in-law and co-brother. These included four-laning of Oddanchattram-Dharapuram-Avinashipalayam highway for a stretch of 70 kilometres at a cost of Rs. 713.45 crore, and four-laning of Tirunelveli-Sengottai-Kollam road for a stretch of 45.64 kilometres at a cost of Rs 720 crore. 

The two MLAs had also named J Sekhar Reddy, the sand baron who was in the news after income tax department seized Rs 134 crore cash and more than 180 kg gold in December 2016, immediately after demonetisation. 

The tenders come under the Highways department which is in charge of the Chief Minister, they had alleged. They had also appealed to Governor Banwarilal Purohit to inquire into the charges.