Seizure of ₹3.98 crore lands Nainar Nagenthran in soup
BJP’s Tirunelveli candidate Nainar Nagendran may be in trouble following seizure of Rs 3.98 crore cash which was allegedly meant for bribing voters in Tirunelveli Lok Sabha constituency.
Election officials seized the cash from three passengers who were on board Chennai-Tirunelveli Nellai Express at Tambaram railway station on Saturday night. The passengers were reportedly linked to the BJP candidate.
The office of the state Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) said the Income Tax department will launch a detailed investigation into the matter.
This is the single largest seizure of unaccounted cash in Tamil Nadu after the Model Code of Conduct came into force.
Meanwhile, the ruling DMK in the state took up the matter with the CEO, seeking action against Nagendran. The DMK alleged that Nagendran planned to distribute money to voters.
“We suspect that Mr Nainar Nagendran stored several crores of money in secret places to distribute to voters,” DMK Organisation Secretary RS Bharathi said in a complaint to TN CEO, Satyabrata Sahoo. The party demanded that searches be conducted at all places belonging to Nagendran. Later, Nagendran claimed he had nothing to do with the money that was seized. Speaking to a Tamil TV channel in Tirunelveli on the matter, the BJP leader alleged that it was a “bid to malign my reputation.”