Alleged Plot to Topple Vijay Ministry in Tamil Nadu, Police Probe Trace Links with DMK
Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, July 1: With the arrest of three persons on Wednesday, the Tamil Nadu police have claimed to have thwarted a plot to topple the two-month old Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) ministry headed by the actor-turned- politician C Joseph Vijay and tracing its links with the state’s erstwhile ruling party the Dravida Munetra Kazhagam (DMK).
Allegations were levelled that some DMK leaders offered Rs 35 crores each to some TVK members of the State Assembly to vote in support of a no-confidence motion against Assembly Speaker JCD Prabhakar. The state intelligence department has claimed it has foiled an alleged conspiracy to destabilise the TVK government, less than two months after it took office.
The plot allegedly involved engineering the simultaneous resignation of 15 TVK MLAs to bring down the government, sources said. Acting on a TVK MLA’s complaint, officials launched a probe and arrested an employee of a consultancy firm. During the investigation, one of the arrested was found to have links to DMK MLA and former minister Senthil Balaji’s brother V. Ashok Kumar.
Two persons were arrested from Chennai, while another one was picked up from Trichy. Officials are probing the alleged conspiracy and its wider network.
The case came to light after TVK MLA from Uthangarai, N Elaiyaraja, filed a complaint with Chennai Police. According to the complaint lodged with the Chennai Police on June 29, a man identified as Thirunavukkarasu contacted him claiming to be the head of an opinion polling organisation named Indian Political Democratic Strategies (IPDS). He allegedly told the MLA that he was speaking on behalf of members of a major political party.
Elaiyaraja alleged that the caller informed him that a motion would soon be moved against the Speaker of the Tamil Nadu Assembly and urged him to vote in favour of it despite being a legislator from the ruling TVK.
In return, the caller allegedly offered him up to Rs 35 crore. The MLA claimed that he rejected the offer and asked the caller not to contact him again. However, he alleged that he was subsequently threatened and warned against revealing the conversation, with the caller allegedly saying that he and his family would face consequences if he spoke about it.
Tamil Nadu Police said the investigation has so far led to the arrest of three people. According to a police press release issued on Wednesday, investigators have also found alleged links to former DMK minister V Senthil Balaji and his brother V Ashok Kumar. Police claim that Ashok Kumar met one of the accused, Naresh, in Chennai. Investigators further allege that Thirunavukkarasu contacted Elaiyaraja at the behest of Senthil Balaji and Ashok Kumar.
Authorities also said intelligence inputs suggested that there was an alleged plan to poach at least 15 TVK MLAs in an attempt to bring down the state government. The investigation is continuing, and police have indicated that the probe could extend to Senthil Balaji and Ashok Kumar.
Tamil Nadu Minister CT Nirmal Kumar attacked the DMK over the alleged plot. “Individuals directly associated with Senthil Balaji, as well as those from the so-called ‘Karur Gang’, are directly implicated in this matter. The police must take legal action and arrest everyone involved. They must put an end to such nefarious activities,” Kumar said.
The minister also accused the DMK of colluding with AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami to try and bring down the Vijay-led government. He alleged that several TVK MLAs have been offered money to defect. “Edappadi Palaniswami and others were attempting to form a government through underhanded means. Today, we are seeing the manifestation of that. Key DMK figures like Senthil Balaji, acting on the orders of MK Stalin and Udhayanidhi, have been contacting many of our MLAs. They have been offering sums of Rs 10 crore, 20 crore, or even 50 crore. There isn’t a single MLA they haven’t approached,” Kumar claimed.
The DMK accused the TVK of leaking details of an ongoing investigation. “TVK just wants to create a public perception by leaking investigation details. This shows they are low on facts and only want to create a narrative,” DMK spokesperson A Saravanan said. He dared the TVK government to arrest Senthil Balaji if it has concrete proof.
Vijay and Senthil Balaji share an acrimonious relationship. The former DMK minister belongs to Karur, which witnessed a stampede during a Vijay election rally. Vijay had then accused Balaji of conspiring to engineer the stampede to discredit him. Balaji had denied the allegation.
The case has intensified political tensions in Tamil Nadu, with the ruling TVK accusing its rivals of attempting to engineer defections through cash inducements. If the allegations are substantiated, the case could become one of the state’s biggest alleged political poaching scandals, raising questions about attempts to influence legislators and destabilise an elected government.
