ED attaches assets worth Rs 100 cr in case against TN MLA Vaithilingam

The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday said it has attached assets worth more than Rs 100 crore as part of a money laundering investigation against former AIADMK minister and serving MLA R Vaithilingam and some others.

The two immovable properties are located in Tiruchirappalli and are registered in the name of Muthammal Estates Pvt Ltd, a family-owned entity, the federal agency claimed in a statement.

Vaithiyalingam, a close aide of former Tamil Nadu chief minister O Panneerselvam (OPS), represents the Orathanadu seat in the Tamil Nadu Assembly.

He was expelled along with OPS from the AIADMK in 2022 during the leadership tussle involving OPS and incumbent party chief Edappadi K Palaniswami. He has been a former minister for housing and urban development.

The money laundering case of the ED is based on an FIR filed by the Tamil Nadu Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) where it was alleged that "R Vaithilingam, during his tenure, accepted a bribe of Rs 27.90 crore from Shriram Properties & Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd. in exchange for granting planning permission for a real estate project."  The ED had conducted searches against the legislator and some others in October 2024 on premises located in Chennai and Thanjavur and it claimed that "a carefully planned" modus operandi was detected that involved the use of "shell entities" to layer and disguise "bribe" payments as share application money.

These payments, according to the agency, were purportedly made by Shriram group entities for the purchase of land and were "never intended for" actual land acquisition.

Instead, the funds were routed through multiple "shell" entities and ultimately parked in Muthammal Estates Pvt. Ltd., a company "controlled" by Vaithilingam's family members, it is alleged.

"The illicit funds were then utilised to acquire the properties located in Tiruchirappalli," the agency claimed.