Chennai, Nov 10:
A special court for vigilance and corruption cases on Tuesday dismissed the bail petition of former DMK minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi in connection with the alleged Rs 400 crore private school recognition bribery scam.
Special Judge Sathiyamurthy rejected the plea following strong objections from the prosecution, accepting the argument of the Central Crime Branch (CCB) that the investigation is at an initial stage and releasing the influential former minister could prejudice the probe. Senior counsel Aravind Kumar, appearing for Anbil Mahesh, had contended that the former minister had cooperated with interrogators during his three-day police custody, provided all required documents, and that the financial collection was carried out by private school association functionary Arasakumar without the petitioner’s involvement.
The CCB registered the case over allegations that massive kickbacks were collected from private school managements to grant government approvals during the previous DMK government. The court observed that the magnitude of the alleged embezzlement warranted continued judicial custody.