ED seeks FIR over alleged MAWS bribe network
The agency states that contractors executing MAWS works allegedly paid 7.5 to 10 per cent of contract value to associates of Minister KN Nehru, describing several payments as “party fund”.
Enforcement Directorate
CHENNAI: The Enforcement Directorate has written to the Tamil Nadu chief secretary, Head of Police Force and the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption alleging large-scale manipulation of tenders in the Municipal Administration and Water Supply (MAWS) department, estimating bribes of at least Rs 1,020 crore. The letter, sent on December 3 under section 66(2) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, is based on a 258-page dossier compiled from digital evidence retrieved during searches carried out in April.
This is the second letter from ED to the government seeking police action against MAWS officials and minister in the last two months. In the earlier letter it was alleged that the minister and officials were involved in cash for job scam in appointment of staff in the department.
The agency states that contractors executing MAWS works allegedly paid 7.5 to 10 per cent of contract value to associates of Minister 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.
The letter cites what the agency described as multiple instances of direct evidence of bribe collection, amounting to Rs 1,020 crore. This material, the ED said, represents only the “tip of the iceberg” of a wider pattern of corruption in government contracts.
Bribes were allegedly collected across a broad range of projects, including community toilets, outsourcing of sanitation workers, NABARD-funded works, construction of sweeper quarters, village roads, and waterbody-related works. The ED also alleged that bribes were collected at the stage of project clearance and passing of bills by officials at various levels, resulting in a total outflow of nearly 20 to 25 per cent of contract value.
The 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 accused in collection of bribes”.
