Medical entrance scam: ED finally arrests film producer Madan

Madan allegedly collected capitation fee from MBBS aspirants' parents after promising them admission

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday arrested B Madan of Vendhar Movies in Chennai under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) for allegedly cheating public to the tune of Rs 91 crore in the medical admissions scam in 2016.

Madan, who also produces Tamil films, has been arrested after five months in hiding.

In Chennai, the ED said that Madan cheated medical entrance exam aspirants to the tune of Rs 91 crore after promising admissions in SRM Group of Institutions. The police have received 133 complaints against Madan. 

ED registered a case under PMLA against Madan and others, based on a June 2016 FIR for the offence of cheating under Section 406 & 420 of IPC, 1860. In the FIR, Madan has also been charged for absconding.

He allegedly collected a huge capitation fee from parents after promising admissions for MBBS aspirants.

All parents on record confessed to the ED that they paid bribes in the range of Rs 50 lakh to Rs 1.05 crore for admissions into SRM Medical College. 

Madan failed to fulfil the admission promise following his tussle with family members of T R Pachamuthu, the owners of SRM Group, over Madan's influence in the decision-making powers of SRM Group, say reports.

Madan claimed that he had paid the money received from parents to the SRM Management on a weekly basis. The SRM Management denied the charge.

The SRM Management says that the institution follows a prescribed procedure for admissions and Madan has no role in their admission process.

It has been ascertained that Madan has acquired several properties during this period. However, he has not revealed the source of funding for the purchase of these properties. Details of his properties are being collected by the ED.

Investigations by the ED revealed that Madan had laundered a part of the money collected from parents by investing in various properties. Accordingly, he was arrested under the PMLA and produced before the XIV Metropolitan judicial magistrate. Madan was remanded to judicial custody up to 6 June 2017 and is currently lodged in central prison, Puzhal.