DVAC searches former DMK minister's residence, institutions

"On specific information, DVAC conducted an enquiry against Pannerselvam for accumulating assets disproportionate to his known sources of income while he was holding the post of minister for health," DVAC said in a press release.

Searches were conducted at the residence of the minister and his relatives in Kattumannar Koil, MRK Institute of Technology and MRK Polytechnic in Nattarmangalam, MRK College of Arts and Science, Chandravadanam Nursing College, Chandravadanam Teacher Training School, Chandravadanam Textiles, it said.

The searches were conducted at 11 places in Chennai, Cuddalore and Nagapattinam districts. A case was yesterday registered against the former minister under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.

Meanwhile, reacting to the searches, Pannerselvam told PTI that the AIADMK government was foisting cases against him. He denied the DVAC claim that some documents had been seized and said they had found about Rs two lakh cash from an engineering college, which was tuition fees paid by students.

Pannerselvam, who was attending a party meeting at Veppur village, 100 km from Cuddalore, in connection with the coming local body polls, rushed to his native village Muttam upon coming to know about the searches.

Pannerselvam is the fifth former DMK minister against whom action has been taken by the Jayalalithaa government after it came to power in May. Four of them --  K Ponmudi, Veerapandi S Arumugam, K N Nehru and N K K P Raja -- have been arrested under land grabbing charges by the AIADMK regime in the crackdown on land grabbing.