The FIR registered by the DVAC Special Investigation Cell names Velu alongside several high-ranking highway engineers, divisional accountants, and Karur-based contractor Sankaranand Infra.
IMAGE: DMK leader Udhay Stalin during an election campaign for party candidate EV Velu (right), in Tiruvannamalai, March 31, 2026. Photograph: @Udhaystalin X/ANI Photo
Key Points
- The scam involves fraudulent payments of over Rs 4.7 crore for road widening and improvement works that were not executed in Karur and Erode districts.
- The case was initiated following a complaint by anti-graft NGO Arappor Iyakkam in April 2022.
- Nine engineering and accounting officials were suspended in 2022 after initial irregularities were exposed.
- DMK Chief M K Stalin condemned the action, calling it politically motivated and asserting the party's resilience.
The Tamil Nadu Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption registered a case against former state highways minister EV Velu, nine department officials, and a private contracting firm for their alleged involvement in a multi-crore road construction scam.
The FIR registered by the DVAC Special Investigation Cell names Velu alongside several high-ranking highway engineers, divisional accountants, and Karur-based contractor Sankaranand Infra.
According to the FIR, the accused entered into a criminal conspiracy during March 2022.
It is alleged that payments amounting to Rs 3.23 crore out of a Rs 7 crore tender were cleared and released to the private contractor for road widening and riding quality improvement works in Karur without any actual work being executed on the ground.
The probe agency further noted that a similar fraudulent payment of approximately Rs1.5 crore was made for two roads under the NABARD and Rural Roads division in Erode district under identical circumstances.
The case was initiated following a detailed complaint lodged in April 2022 by Jayaram Venkatesan, the convenor of the anti-graft NGO Arappor Iyakkam.
The complainant had alleged widespread corruption and criminal misappropriation of public funds, prompting a preliminary inquiry.
The DVAC has booked the accused under sections 120B (Criminal Conspiracy), section 409 (Criminal Breach of Trust by Public Servant), section 420 (Cheating) of IPC and 468 & 471 (Forgery) of IPC as well as relevant provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (as amended in 2018).
The DVAC stated that prior permission under Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act was duly obtained from the competent authority before registering the formal case.
Following the initial exposure of the irregularities in 2022, nine engineering and accounting officials across the Karur and Erode divisions were placed under suspension after departmental inquiries confirmed the lapses.
The original FIR has been submitted before the principal judge, city civil and sessions court in Chennai, as further investigation gets underway.
Earlier in the day, the DVAC carried out searches at several places in the state linked to Velu, drawing a sharp response from Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief M K Stalin.
Condemning the action, Stalin, on a social media platform, said Velu is fully cooperating with the authorities and will legally vindicate himself in court. He also termed it a "politically motivated move".
"History bears witness to the fact that not a single corruption case filed out of political vendetta has ever been proven successful against us," the former CM claimed.
Emphasising the party's resilience, he said, "The DMK is not an organisation that will succumb to such intimidation by the ruling party! We have faced far greater oppressions than this. We will confront this as well and emerge victorious."
