Income Tax officials search house of T.N. Minister E.V. Velu’s associate in Tiruchi

Income Tax officials searched the house of a businessman in Anna Nagar in Tiruchi on Tuesday, November 7, 2023.
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Officers of the Income Tax (I-T) Department, on Tuesday, November 7, 2023, conducted a search at the house of a businessman in Tiruchi, who is reportedly associated with T.N. Minister for Public Works Department, Highways and Minor Ports, E.V. Velu.

Accompanied by Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel, a team of nearly 10 officials from the I-T Department arrived at the house of Manapparai Swaminathan on Kannadasan Street, Anna Nagar, in Tiruchi city, around 9.30 a.m., sources said.

According to sources, Swaminathan, a financier-cum-businessman, is said to be an associate of Mr. Velu.

The searches at his house in Tiruchi come on the heels of simultaneous searches launched by the I-T Department on November 3, 2023, at educational institutions and other properties linked to the Minister in Tiruvannamalai. The officials, on the same day, also brought under the scanner, the premises of some of the contractors dealing with Mr. Velu’s portfolio, and persons associated with him, in Karur.