TASMAC Money Laundering: ED Says 'State Not Cooperating' As Tamil Nadu Moves Madras HC Against Probe | Exclusive
The Tamil Nadu government and TASMAC have filed petitions in the Madras High Court against ED searches, citing jurisdictional overreach. ED claims non-cooperation from state police.
The Tamil Nadu government and the Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) have filed petitions in the Madras High Court challenging recent searches conducted by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). These petitions, listed before the bench of Justice MS Ramesh and Justice N Senthilkumar, argue that the ED’s power to investigate money laundering offences within a state’s jurisdiction without prior consent from the state government violates the fundamental principles of federalism and the separation of powers.
The state government has also requested an interim order directing the ED to provide a copy of the Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) related to the searches.
related stories
Top ED sources have revealed that the Tamil Nadu government has not been cooperating with investigations by central agencies in ED cases. They allege that the state police are not sharing First Information Reports (FIRs) related to cases that fall under the ED’s purview, despite multiple requests. Furthermore, the ED claims that the Tamil Nadu Police are not uploading relevant FIRs online, hindering their access to crucial information. Sensitive FIRs, in particular, are reportedly never uploaded.
In the TASMAC case, the ED has reportedly combined information from 40-50 smaller FIRs filed by the State Anti-Corruption Bureau to create its ECIR. These FIRs pertain to allegations of bribery, irregularities in awarding tenders to distilleries, and discrepancies in issuing bar licences by TASMAC regional offices. The ED emphasises that their findings are based on recent data and clearly indicate suspicious money transactions. The agency asserts that the lack of cooperation and compliance with ED investigations is a serious issue and goes against the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) guidelines. They highlight that, in other states, state police readily share FIRs with the ED for investigations related to money laundering.
The ED maintains that this case is part of a larger investigation into financial irregularities within TASMAC, which has sparked political and legal controversy. CNN-News18 had previously reported on an alleged scam exceeding Rs 1,000 crore within TASMAC.
A CNN-News18 exclusive exposé revealed evidence of manipulation in TASMAC’s transport tender allocations. Tenders were allegedly awarded despite having only one applicant in the final bidding stage. Shockingly, the final successful bidder had not even obtained the mandatory Demand Draft (DD) before the application deadline. Further discrepancies were found between the KYC details provided by the applicant and the information on the DD. TASMAC reportedly paid over Rs 100 crore annually to transporters.
The ED believes that this is just the tip of the iceberg in a multi-crore manipulation scheme. They suspect that huge bribes are being paid to secure bar licenses and transport tenders. Evidence supporting these claims is currently being analysed.
In one instance, SNJ Distillery allegedly transferred Rs 20 crore to a company linked to a DMK MP under the guise of “marketing expenses." This expense was later written off, raising suspicions of a sham transaction intended as a bribe.
Evidence suggests that tender conditions were manipulated during the allocation of bar licenses by TASMAC. Applicants without proper GST/PAN numbers and KY documentation were awarded tenders.
Distilleries like SNJ, Kals, Accord, SAIFL, and Shiva Distillery, along with bottling companies like Devi Bottles and Crystal Bottles, allegedly inflated expenses and fabricated purchases to siphon off funds. This unaccounted money was then used as kickbacks.
The ED’s investigation also uncovered instances of TASMAC outlets overcharging customers beyond the Maximum Retail Price (MRP) and distillery companies bribing TASMAC officials for larger supply orders. Senior TASMAC officials are also accused of accepting bribes for manipulating staff transfers and postings.
- Location :
- First Published: