Rs 100 crore Palani mutt land case: Sub-registrar arrested from Kodaikanal hideout

MADURAI: The CB-CID on Thursday arrested sub-registrar Justin Manikandan Subramanian, one of the main accused in the alleged fraudulent registration of a Rs 100-crore property belonging to the Dhandayuthapani Swamigal Mutt in Palani.

A special police team secured him from a house in the Kodaikanal hills, where he was reportedly hiding, and brought him to the CB-CID office in Dindigul for inquiry.

The arrest came a day after the Madurai bench of the Madras High Court dismissed his bail petition, observing that granting bail to the petitioner and another accused, Jayaprakash, at this stage would hamper the investigation.

According to the CB-CID, Justin Manikandan and Jayaprakash allegedly colluded with another key accused, advocate Anwardeen, in the fraudulent registration of the property.

The police also searched Jayaprakash’s residence in Oddanchatram. Later, they brought eight people, including his wife, Senbagamathi, to Dindigul for questioning. Investigators are questioning them to ascertain Jayaprakash's whereabouts and identify persons who may have been in close contact with him.

The investigation also revealed that after completing the initial registration process, the then sub-registrar, Balasundar, had specifically recorded in the minutes book the temple authorities had filed a writ appeal challenging the order directing to register the document. However, without considering this minutes and remarks, Manikandan have straightaway completed the registration process by assigning the document number.

According to the investigation, Anwardeen confessed that he had tried to influence Balasundar through Jayaprakash to fraudulently register the document. However, the official refused to yield to their pressure. The accused then allegedly approached Justin Manikandan, who subsequently completed the registration process.

The investigation also revealed that the then Sub-Registrar, Balasundar, had specifically recorded in the minutes book, after completing the initial registration process, that the temple authorities had filed a writ appeal challenging the court order directing the registration of the document. However, despite these remarks, Justin Manikandan allegedly completed the registration process by assigning the document number.

Initially, the Palani Adivaram police booked Justin Manikandan, school teacher Murugadas (56) of Salamedu in Villupuram, and others. The investigation was later transferred to the CB-CID, which expanded the case by naming 11 accused, including the sub-registrar.

The CB-CID had earlier arrested Murugadas, who allegedly executed the sale deed, purchasers Vellathurai (60) and Sethupathi (67), and advocate Anwardeen (65) of Goundankulam near Palani. All four were remanded in judicial custody.

On Wednesday, the Dindigul Judicial Magistrate-I Court granted the CB-CID three days' police custody of the four accused for interrogation. They were subsequently brought to the CB-CID office in Dindigul for questioning.