GUTKHA SCAM: Stalin seeks sacking of Minister, DGP
Chennai, Sep 7 (IANS) DMK President M.K. Stalin on Friday expressed shock that no action has been taken against Tamil Nadu Health and Family Welfare Minister C. Vijaya Baskar and DGP T.K. Rajendran after CBI raids related to the gutkha scam and again demanded their sacking as well as arrest.
Stalin said he was shocked over the "inaction" of the Tamil Nadu government and Governor Banwarilal Purohit in moving against the two.
It is shocking that even after the CBI raids at the residences of Baskar and Rajendran the government had not dismissed them and even the Governor had not taken any action, he said in a statement here.
The DMK leader said it was not clear why Baskar and Rajendran, who are accused of accepting bribes from a gutka manufacturer, have not been arrested yet while bribe-giver gutkha manufacturer A.V. Mahdava Rao, intermediary and government officials were arrested by CBI on Thursday.
On Septembr 5, the Central Bureau of Investigation raided the houses of Baskar, Rajendran, gutkha manufacturer Rao and several state and central government officials in Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh as a part of investigating the alleged payment and receipt of bribes.
Stalin said that as per a diary noting by Rao a bribe of Rs 60 lakh was allegedly paid on April 21, May 20 and June 20 in 2016 to 'CP'.
He alleged that Rao told Income Tax officials that 'CP' stood for Commissioner of Police.
The Leader of the Opposition in the Tamil Nadu Assembly said that it was Rajendran who was then the Commissioner of Police in Chennai.
Stalin said that another diary noting mentioned Rs 56 lakh paid to 'HM' between April 1, 2016 and June 15, 2016 and as per Rao 'HM' means Health Minister.
Citing other diary entries, Stalin said Rs 20 lakh was given to a Joint Police Commissioner on November 4, 2015, December 10, 2015 and Jauary 2, 2016.
--IANS
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