Chennai, Nov 11:
DMK legal wing joint secretary I. Paranthamen has filed a writ petition in the Madras High Court seeking a comprehensive DVAC investigation into alleged multi-crore corruption in book procurement for the newly inaugurated Periyar Arivulagam in Coimbatore.
In his petition, Paranthamen stated that the seven-storey library and science centre was constructed at an outlay of Rs 300 crore, comprising Rs 245 crore for civil works, Rs 50 crore for book purchases, and Rs 5 crore for digital infrastructure. He submitted that private firms Agal Vilakku Publications and Phoenix Publications supplied thousands of substandard, AI-generated volumes carrying fictitious author credits, citing 162 titles published under a single name within six months.
The petition referred to disclosures made by writer Perumal Murugan, who served on the Book Recommendation Committee, regarding 1,800 questionable books found in the library. Paranthamen pleaded for an interim direction instructing the DVAC to seize and seal all procurement files, purchase orders, delivery challans, and accession registers to prevent tampering.