In a significant development, the legal wing of the opposition AIADMK in Tamil Nadu has formally approached the state's anti-corruption watchdog, demanding a criminal case and a thorough investigation into an alleged illegal sand mining scandal valued at a staggering ₹4,700 crore.
Petition Filed with Vigilance Directorate
On Saturday, the AIADMK's legal cell submitted a detailed petition to the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC). The plea urges the agency to register an FIR and conduct an impartial probe into the large-scale illicit extraction of sand across the state. The petition was filed by the party's legal wing deputy secretary, S Tamilselvan.
The complaint specifically points fingers at officials from the state's Water Resources Department (WRD). It calls for a comprehensive investigation into the roles played by WRD officials, contractors, intermediaries, and individuals allegedly connected to State Minister Duraimurugan. The petitioner asserts that the minister's purported involvement forms a substantial part of the findings by a central investigative agency.
ED Findings and Staggering Financial Scale
According to the AIADMK's petition, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted a detailed inquiry into the matter. The central agency's investigation reportedly found that contractors, in collusion with officials from the mines' wing of the WRD, extracted sand far beyond the legally permitted limits. This unchecked excess mining is alleged to have continued over a long period.
The financial magnitude of the alleged scam is colossal. The petitioner states that the ED estimated the value of the illegally mined sand to be approximately ₹4,730 crore. In stark contrast, the Tamil Nadu government recorded a revenue of only about ₹36.45 crore from sand mining between the years 2021 and 2023. This vast discrepancy highlights the potential scale of revenue loss to the state exchequer.
The ED's valuation is said to be based on a sand mining survey conducted by IIT-Kanpur. However, the AIADMK's petition alleges that instead of acting on these serious findings, the state government has been attempting to shield corruption by dismissing the IIT-Kanpur survey as "illegal" and "without jurisdiction."
Demand for Action on ED Dossier
The legal wing has sought a comprehensive probe into the ED's official communication and the detailed dossier it submitted on June 13 last year. The core demand is for the DVAC to take immediate cognizance of the evidence presented by the central agency and initiate an unbiased investigation to bring all responsible parties to justice.
This move by the principal opposition party is set to intensify the political battle in Tamil Nadu, putting the ruling DMK government on the defensive over allegations of high-level corruption and massive loss of state resources. The ball is now in the court of the vigilance directorate to decide on further action.
