The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday provisionally attached properties worth Rs 40.34 crore belonging to a granite firm owned by Dhayanidhi Alagiri alias Durai, son of expelled DMK leader and former Union Minister M K Alagiri. The firm, Olympus Granites Private Limited, had been accused of indulging in illegal mining of granites in Madurai, the turf of Alagiri.
In all, 25 movable and immovable assets belonging to the firm in Madurai and Chennai have been attached under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. These include land, buildings and fixed deposits. The police had earlier initiated action against the company and its directors and filed a charge-sheet in the case as well.
“The company, its shareholders, promoters, directors viz, S. Nagarajan and Dhayanidhi Alagiri along with other accused, criminally conspired and indulged in illegal mining activities in the adjacent TAMIN (Tamil Nadu Minerals Ltd) leased land and thereby, causing wrongful loss to the government and corresponding wrongful gain to themselves,” the attachment order issued by the ED said. Dhayanidhi did not react to the development.
The Enforcement Directorate said that the charge-sheet in the case disclosed commission of various offences under provisions of Indian Penal Code and the Explosive Substances Act. “Investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act revealed that M/s Olympus Granites Pvt Ltd and its promoters / shareholders / directors have committed a Scheduled Offence and derived proceeds of crime by indulging in the illegal quarrying,” the order said.
“The trade proceeds of the company derived there from were further relentlessly incubated and thereby resulting in further accruals of proceeds of crime, all of which were camouflaged in the organisational system as business, income / earnings, although gained out of the said illegal activity,” it added.
Inputs from Freepressjournal