Tamil Nadu minister acquitted in Ponmudi land grab case

Chennai: A special court to hear cases against MPs/MLAs acquitted Tamil Nadu minister today A case has been registered for grabbing government land for higher education and at Ponmudi of senior DMK leader by forging documents.

Special court judge G Jayavel acquitted six others, including Ponmudi and Greater Chennai Corporation deputy mayor Magesh Kumar, for lack of material evidence to prove the charges.

The land grab FIR was registered in 2003 by the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) against Ponmudi, her mother-in-law late P Saraswathi, Magesh Kumar and others. They were accused of forcibly occupying 3630 square feet of government land located in Srinagar Colony, Saidapet, forcibly evicting Kannan, who had built a hut on the said land. Later, documents were allegedly fabricated to show that Kannan had sold the land to Saraswathi at a price of Rs. 8 lakhs. Later, Ponmudi had built a house at a cost of Rs. 35 lakhs. The minister was accused of criminal misconduct, abuse of official powers and adopting corrupt and illegal means to grab the land. The special court acquitted Ponmudi in the case after a petition in 2007 Filed by him. However, in 2017 the Madras High Court overturned the order after finding prima facie evidence against him.