Chennai, Sept 22:
Former Tamil Nadu Minister and DMK MLA Raghupathi on Monday rejected allegations that the previous DMK regime had favoured GEM Granites founder R Veeramani in the POCSO case, asserting that the case was neither withdrawn nor deliberately kept pending to protect anyone.
Addressing reporters at Anna Arivalayam in Chennai, Raghupathi said the investigation had been kept pending as investigators did not have sufficient evidence at that stage. He also claimed that the video available with the investigators did not clearly establish the identity or circumstances of the alleged offence. “We did not withdraw the case or stop the investigation,” he said.
The case has returned to the political spotlight following the identification of multiple survivors. Police have said several survivors were minors at the time of the alleged offences and that provisions of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act were also invoked.
Raghupathi denied allegations that the DMK had protected Veeramani or taken money to prevent his arrest. “We have no necessity to take money from Veeramani and keep him from being arrested,” he said. He asserted that Veeramani had contacts across political parties and that the DMK had never extended special concessions to him.
He said everyone involved in the case, irrespective of their political affiliations, should be brought before the law and punished if found guilty. The DMK, he added, would support any action necessary to ensure that no accused escaped punishment.
Raghupathi also criticised the present government over its handling of the case and questioned the delay between the complaint and the latest action. He alleged that leaks of investigation details could affect the case and accused the police of functioning under political pressure.
Turning to State politics, Raghupathi accused the four-month-old Vijay government of having little to show in terms of achievements and alleged that it was concentrating on attacking the DMK ahead of the bypolls.
He alleged that Tamil Nadu was facing problems with law and order and crimes against women and children. He also criticised Chief Minister Vijay, accusing him of spending excessive time making “reels” instead of concentrating on governance.
Raghupathi said the DMK would not accept what he described as baseless allegations against the party. Referring to the Veeramani case, he reiterated: “Let the law take its course. We are not guilty and have done nothing wrong.”