Vigilance officials on Thursday conducted raids at 16 premises belonging to former Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam minister Veerapandi S Arumugam and his relatives in Chennai and Salem in connection with a disproportionate assets case
Besides Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, who won from his native Tiruvarur by a huge margin of over 50,000 votes, other ministers who saved the embarrassment to DMK are his son M K Stalin (Kolathur), Durai Murugan (Katpadi), I Periyasamy (Athoor) E V Velu (Tiruvannamalai), Thangam Thennarasu (Tiruchuli), T P M Mohideen Khan (Palayamkottai) Suba Thangavelan (Tiruvadanai) and K Ramachandran (Coonoor).
In the continuing crackdown by the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam government on land grabbing, a former Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam member of Legislative Assembly was on Tuesday arrested for his alleged role in a case. Ranganathan was arrested in Chennai based on a complaint, the police said.
Former Tamil Nadu Minister K Ponmudi is the fourth former minister after Veerapandi S Arumugam (Salem), K N Nehru (Tiruchirappalli) and N K K P Raja (Erode) to be arrested on land grabbing charges in the crackdown launched by the Jayalalithaa Government on land grabbing.
The Bt brinjal issue had been firmly opposed by civil societies, NGOs and a section of scientists and health experts on the genetically modified vegetable's effects on human health and soil fertility.