CORRUPTION COMPLAINTS ON 2 AIADMK MINISTERS

CHENNAI: Former DMK MLA Mr.M.Appavu has today lodged two complaints under Prevention of Corruption Act before Director of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption, Chennai to take against AIADMK Ministers Mr. S.P.Velumani, and Mr. R.Kamaraj today – 20th July 2020.

Herewith attached the Two Complaints:-
Complaint – I

From: M. APPAVU, Ex. MLA
DMK Party, #14/90 A, Main Road,
Lebbaikudiyiruppu, Mehendragiri Post,
Radhapuram Taluk, Tirunelveli District -627 133

To
The Director,
Vigilance and Anti-corruption,
Chennai.
Sir,

1.         I am a former MLA of the DMK Party and a whistle blower in public life. I hereby submit the following complaint against Minister for Municipal Administration and Rural Development Mr. S.P.Velumani for swindling the exchequer in the name of replacing tube lights of Village Panchayat level in entire state. The facts are as follows: –

2.         I submit that the under the guise of reducing of  electricity consumption and annual maintenance of street lights at entire Village Panchayat jurisdiction of our State, the Minister Mr. S.P.Velumanihatched a plan of swindling public money in the name of replacing the old street lights to LED lights at all Village Panchayat level.  The total Village Panchayats have the following categories of street lights and the break up is that as on 2015-16 :

Tube Lights                             :           16,28,356
                        Mercury Lights                        :                 10,380
                        Sodium vapor Lights               :             1,00,861
                        CFL Lights                               :             5,30,064
                        Solar Lights                             :                32,344
                        LED Lights                              :                  2,815

            And additionally included tube
            lights for the year 2016-17      :                            70,407

3.         I state that the Hon’ble Minister for Municipal Administration and Rural Development Mr.S.P.Velumani to execute his conspiracy to swindle the exchequer made the Hon’ble Chief Minister to announce the replacement of above said lights on the floor of Assembly under Rule 110 of Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly Rules. The said Minister with an an intention to commit offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act had drawn an idea of announcing the replacing all old street lightsto LED lights of entire Village Panchayats under Rule 110 of TNLA Rules because when Hon’ble Chief Minister announce any scheme on the floor of Assembly under the said Rule 110, the Assembly members has no right to question or seek explanation of that scheme. This replacement of abovesaid lights in Village Panchayat level in phased manner was announced by the Hon’ble Chief Minister in 3 occasions for 3 financial years viz. 2015-16, 2016-17 and 2018-19, by which the Minister Mr. S.P Velumani protected himself from replying to any query from the opposition.

4.         I state that according to the announcements of the Hon’ble chief Minister in assembly in 3 financial years, his department i.e. the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department issued the following Government Orders for replacing old lights to LED lights in phased manner at Village Panchayat level for total cost of Rs. 875 cr. The details of orders are as follows:

5.         I state that whenthe cost of replacing streetlights comes to Rs. 300 cr per financial year, he has duty and responsibility to issue global tender since the work order sum is exceeding Rs. 50 cr as per the Tamil Nadu Transparency in Tender Act 1998. Knowing fully well that such tenders within legal parameters may not helpful to his plan of earning crores of public exchequer money illegally,the Hon’ble Minister Mr. S.P.Velumani constituted a State Level Committee to fix cost of LED lights for each financial year to fix the cost of lights and divided the  work order in to 38 districts and floated local e-tenders by District Collector as the work order is reduced to below Rs.50 crores.Accordingly, the State Level Committee (in short SLC) comprised officials as:

            a)         The Director of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj – Chairman
            b)         The Chairman/MD of TEDA or his nominee of CMD, TEDA
            c)         Principal Secretary, Finance Department or his nominee
            d)         The Supt. Engineer of Rural Development from o/o DRD&PR
            f)          One Supt. Engineer nominated  by the Chairman, TANGEDCO

TheSLCwithout being aware of the ground reality or the cost of each of the LED lights in retail markets or wholesale markets, fixed abnormal and sky high price to each category of LED lights in all three 2015-16, 2016-17 and 2017-18 financial years without applying its mind except executing the Minister’s instructions of fixing such high and abnormal cost to LED lights by causing huge loss to public exchequer. As per the Hon’ble Minister’s instructions, the details of cost fixed by the SLC and comparison the cost of LED lights in retail market for the 3 financial yearsand break up is hereunder :

6.         I state that further the SLC also framed the terms and conditions of tenders for the Minister’s men conveniently to get contract for replacing lights at Districts level. As per the terms and conditions of the tender framed by the SLC, the District Collectors floated tenders at District Level to purchase LED lights to Village Panchayats. Since the script of corruption is well drafted and approved by the Hon’ble Minister Mr. S.P. Velumani in his department level at the Secretariat, the District Collectors followed the script of corruption to implement the same by which the Hon’ble Minister pocketed huge exchequer money through his benami vendors/suppliers/contractors at District level, who are neither manufacturers of LED lights nor dealers of branded LED lights companies. Mr. S. P.Velumani constituted the SLC to take away the financial empowerment granted under  Panchyat Raj Act to the Village Panchayat Presidents is just to swindle the public exchequer money in single window system. The usurping the financial empowerment of the Village Panchayat Presidents grave danger to the Panchayat Raj system.

7.         I state that,on my enquiry, I found the vendors/suppliers of 20 and 90 Watt LED suppliers to various districts are either fake or haveno experience in electrical business or don’t have permanent entities and those are nothing but benami entities of Hon’ble Minister S. P. Velumani. The sample list of LED lights benamisuppliers to the districts hereunder.

8.         The list of suppliers is not exhaustive, but it is a sample to prove primafacie corruption committed by the said minister in replacing LED lights in village panchayats during 2015 to 2018financial years and caused huge loss to the exchequer. If we see the history of the above said suppliers, it would clear as to how the corruption took place. The so-called supplier in item No. 1 is none else but AIADMK party Coimbatore District Rural Wing Secretary Mr. Rajan Chandrasekar. His company has no previous experience of supplying electrical goods but he is close associate of Mr. S.P. Velumani.Hence he was awarded contract of supplying LED lights. The so called suppliers are neither manufacturers of LED lights nor dealers/agency of manufacturing companies of LED lights. These so called suppliers purchased these LED lights from open wholesale market and supplied the same as the price fixed by the State Level Committee. 

9.         I further state that the  above-mentioned suppliers from Item No.2 to 11 are not at all in anyway connected with supplying electrical goods nor bulbs nor LED lights. For example the address of suppliers in Item No. 9, 10 and 11 would very clearly express whether they are real entities of doing business.  No GST numbers provided by all the aforementioned suppliers. Further, on my enquiry, the so-called suppliers from Item No. 4 to 11, do not have any  business entity except lending their names to obtain  contracts illegally to supply LED lights at the rate of sky high price to assist the Minister Mr. S.P.Velumani to swindle the public money the assistance of his Administrative Officers.  If he had floated global tender,the LED lights manufacturers companies such as viz. Osram, Philips, Surya, Voltas, Crompton Greaves, Wipro, NTL Electronics, etc would have participated and it would be finalized, the cost of purchasing LED lights would have been10 times lower to replace all old lights to LED lights  with technical experts assistance to save public money.

10.       I submit that the Hon’ble Minister Mr. S.P.Velumani hatched idea of fixing sky high cost of LED lights under his Administrative Officers/State Level Committee and drafted the terms of tenders to enable his benamis to participate and they were awarded contracts to replace old street lights at Village Panchayats at District/Union Panchayat level for the fixed sky high price by SLC. When the 20 Watt LED light cost at Rs.450/- with fittings, the State Level Committee fixed the cost Rs. 3,737/- for 2015-16 FY and Rs.4,120/- for 2016-17 FY.The 90 watt LED lights available at cost of Rs. 1550/- with fittings, the State Level Committee fixed cost of the 90Watt LED light at Rs. 14,919/- during 2017-81 FY.  His department utilized the Rs.811 cr. of State Funds and Rs.69 cr. from District Panchayat Funds, totally Rs.875 cr. fund was taken out to replace the old lights to LED lights at Village Panchayat level.   Under this mechanism of fixing cost of LED lights and framing terms and conditions of tender at District level by State Level Committee and awarding contracts to his benamis, he caused great loss to the exchequer about Rs. 500 cr money and he and his officials of SLC pocketed the exchequer money about sum of Rs. 500 cr. in the said 3 financial years and caused loss to the Government.

            The abovesaid facts areprimafacie toestablish the offences under the provisions of ……Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 and 2018 committed by the Hon’ble Minister for Municipal Administration and Rural Development Mr. S. P.Velumani for having loss to exchequer public money and pocketed the same about Rs. …..crfor the financial years2015-16, 2016-17 and 2017 -18 along with his State Level Committee officials for those three years and …..

                                                                                                            M.APPAVU

Annexures :
1.    G.O.Ms. No. 19, RD and PR Dept, dated 02.02.2016
2.    G.O.Ms. No. 11, RD and PR Dept, dated 25.01.2017
3.    G.O.Ms. No. 23, RD and PR Dept, dated 13.02.2018
4.    G.O.Ms. No. 47, RD and PR Dept, dated 26.03.2018
5.    Cash Bill for 20 & 90 Watt LED lights, dated 17.08.2016
6.    Cash Bill copy for 20Watt LED light, dated 22.09.2017
7.    Cash Bill copy for 90Watt LED light, dated 22.09.2017
8.    RTI reply of Nagapattinam District Collector, dated 27.04.2018
9.    RTI reply of Selam District Collector, dated 23.10.2018
10.  RTI reply of BDO, Kanyakuamari District, dated 02.05.2019
11.  RTI reply of DyBDO, Manalmelkudi Union, dated 03.05.2019
12.  RTI reply of DyBDO, Valajah Union, dated 09.05.2019
13.  RTI reply of DyBDO, Konganapuram Union, dated 20.05.2019
14.  RTI reply of Asst. Project Director, Dharumapuri Dist. Dated 24.05.19
15.  RTI reply of DyBDO, Sankarankovil Union, dated 28.05.2019
16.  RTI reply of DyBDO, Kalvarayanmalai Union, dated 03.06.2019
17.  RTI reply of Asst. Project Officer, Virudhunagar District, dated 04.06.2019
18.  RTI reply of DyBDO, Anthanallur Union, dated 10.06.2019
19.  RTI reply of DyBDO, Manachanallur Union, dated 19.06.2019
20.  RTI reply of DyBDO, Kottur Union, dated 28.06.2019
21.  RTI reply of DyBDO, Nagapattinam Union, dated 03.07.2019
22.  RTI reply of DyBDO, Thollaar Union, dated 08.07.2019
23.  RTI reply of DYBDO, Paramakudi Union, dated 10.10.2019

Complaint – II
Sir,

I am a former MLA of the DMK Party, being in public life. I am preferring this complaint regarding a grave offence of corruption committed and through which, surreptitiously wealth has been amassed by cheating the poor public of Tamil Nadu State by the public servants mentioned hereunder:

The Union Government  by its policy decision had decided to distribute 5kg rice to each beneficiaries under TPDS (AAY & PHH) card holders at free of cost for three months from April, May and June 2020  as additional allocation of food grains and distribution under the PRADHAN MANTRI GARIB KALYAN ANNA YOJANA (in short PMGKAY) to each State and UTs. Tamil Nadu state is one among them.  Accordingly, the Union of India issued order under its Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Good and Public Distribution Department of Food and Public Distribution in vide ref. No. F.No. 7-1/2019 (ii) – BP.III, dated 30.03.2020.  The Ministry advised all the State and UT governments to lift additional allocation together with the monthly allocation under National Food Security Act (in short NFSA) within timelines. It is very clearly mentioned that the free rice forAAYand PHH – UPDS family card holders/beneficiaries shall be distributed 5kg per person to each of the beneficiaries for three months (April, May and June 2020). Further the Annexure of the said order has given clear details of number of beneficiaries/persons to each State and UTsvice for the additional free rice.  As per the order dated 30.03.2020 of Union of India, the breakup of the number of beneficiaries and quantum of the additional free rice 5kg per person for our State is hereunder:

DETAILS OF TAMIL NADU UPDS FAMILY CARD HOLDERS UNDER PMGKAY

1.     No. of persons in AAY card holders in TN                      :      73, 27,000
2.     No. of persons in PHH card holders in TN                      :   2,84,07,000
The total No. of beneficiaries per month  :3,57,34,000

1.     Rice 5kg per person of AAY card holders  :        36,635.19 MTs
2.     Rice 5kg per person of PHH card holders  :    1,42,033.37 MTs

Total amount of free rice per month :    1,78,668.56 MTs

2          I state that accordingly the Union of India allotted additional free rice to our State to distribute to (1,78,668.56 X 3 months) 5,36,005.68 MTs for 3.57 crores of beneficiaries i.e. 5kg per person to AA