TVK Bribery Scandal: Accused Middlemen Appeal to High Court as Hawala Links Emerge

Legal Maneuvers in Judicial Corruption Probe

Two suspects detained for their alleged roles in an attempt to bribe Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) legislators have escalated their pursuit for freedom to the Madras High Court. S. Karthik of Tiruppur and T. Ramesh of Karur, identified by investigators as the seventh and eighth accused, seek to overturn a July 17, 2026, decision by the sessions court that kept them in custody. Justice G.K. Ilanthiraiyan, who oversees the MP/MLA legal portfolio, is scheduled to hear their petitions on July 27.

The scandal centers around former DMK Minister and current Coimbatore South MLA V. Senthilbalaji. Prosecutors allege a scheme to offer ₹35 crore to every TVK MLA who defected, with an additional ₹5 crore commission promised to middlemen. The Triplicane police initiated the case on June 30 following a formal complaint by Uthangarai TVK MLA N. Elaiyaraja.

Defense Claims Procedural Misconduct

In their filings, Karthik and Ramesh argue that their names were omitted from the initial First Information Report (FIR) and that their arrests were executed without the mandatory inquiry notices required under Section 35(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita. The petitioners further contend that:

• Authorities failed to produce them before a judicial magistrate within the legally mandated 24-hour window post-arrest.
• Police allegedly used threats to extract forced confessions linking the two men to Senthilbalaji and his brother, R.V. Ashok Kumar.
• The suspects maintain they are mere acquaintances of the Senthilbalaji family with no financial or political ties.

Prosecution Details Complex Hawala Infrastructure

The state's case portrays the petitioners as active participants in a conspiracy designed to topple the administration. Principal District and Sessions Judge S. Karthikeyan previously denied bail, citing the necessity of uncovering a vast Hawala network. Evidence presented by the prosecution details clandestine meetings in various Chennai hotels where the accused supposedly exchanged scanned images of ₹100 and ₹20 banknotes to serve as tokens for illicit money transfers.

Police report the recovery of several lakh rupees during raids on the residences of various suspects. The prosecution argues that releasing the pair at this stage would jeopardize the investigation, as authorities are still tracing the full extent of the financial trail and suspect the accused might tamper with remaining evidence.

Source: The Hindu — Home