Scandal Unveiled: Rs 4 Crore Seized in BJP Hotel Raid

The electoral flying squad, alongside law enforcement, obtained confidential intelligence and carried out inspections within the carriages of Tambaram railway station, where they encountered three individuals of suspicion aboard the AC coaches of the Nellai Express train. Upon interrogation by the authorities, these individuals provided conflicting responses.

In light of this suspicion, the officials proceeded to search the six bags in their possession, revealing an approximate sum of Rs 4 crores in cash. Consequently, the authorities confiscated the entirety of the aforementioned sum. The individuals involved in the attempted smuggling were identified as Sateesh, Naveen, and Perumal. Notably, Sateesh claimed affiliation with the BJP candidate for Tirunelveli, Nainar Nagendran, stating his role as the manager of Nainar Nagendran’s Blue Diamond Hotel in Purasaivakam. Furthermore, it came to light that Perumal is a relative of Nainar Nagendran. Subsequently, the trio was apprehended by officials and escorted to the Tambaram police station.

Following these events, the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer for Tamil Nadu announced that the IT department would initiate a thorough investigation into the matter. The confiscated funds were handed over to the treasury in the presence of Tambaram Tahsildar Natarajan. Meanwhile, an inquiry into the source of the four crore rupees allegedly transported from the aforementioned hotel was launched by the electoral flying squad. The accused purportedly intended to transport the money from Tirunelveli to Egmore. It is noteworthy that Nainar Nagendran also serves as the incumbent BJP MLA from Tirunelveli.

Later, the Election Flying Squad conducted a search at the residence of Nainar Nagendran’s cousin, Murugan, in Virugambakkam. Additionally, it was disclosed that Naveen, Sateesh, and Perumal, who were detained during the investigation, had pooled the funds from various locations.

While the DMK demanded thorough searches of all premises associated with the BJP candidate, leaders from the saffron party dismissed these actions as a smear campaign against their representative.

Sources revealed that the arrested individuals had accumulated the four crore rupees, along with additional funds from a hostel on Chennai’s Greenways Road, the Elephant Gate area of Chennai, and various other locations.

Investigations uncovered that the suspects had secured AC compartment bookings on the train using a letter from Nainar Nagendran, the BJP MLA from Tirunelveli. Furthermore, the Income Tax Department is poised to undertake an inquiry into the matter should the confiscated amount exceed Rs. 10 lakh during the election period.

R S Bharathi, the DMK organizational secretary, penned a missive to the Chief Electoral Officer of Tamil Nadu, asserting, “On April 6th, Election Commission officials seized Rs 4.5 crores at Tambaram railway station from the Tirunelveli-bound Superfast express train. It is alleged that this sum belongs to Nainar Nagendran, a contender in the Tirunelveli parliamentary constituency.”

Bharathi alleged that Nayanar Nagendran had amassed substantial cash reserves across multiple locations for distribution among voters, urging authorities to conduct searches at all such sites. He further claimed that the Bharatiya Janata Party intends to distribute funds to voters in all constituencies where their candidates are contesting, emphasizing the need for scrutiny at these premises.