V. Senthilbalaji. File
| Photo Credit: B. Jothi Ramalingam
Electricity, Prohibition, and Excise Minister V. Senthilbalaji said he would face the allegations from the Enforcement Directorate (ED) legally, adding that the agency’s complaint regarding irregularities in Tasmac was made with “ulterior motives” and without any evidence.
The ED had said it had uncovered serious financial fraud involving distillery companies and bottling entities through the generation of unaccounted-for cash and illicit payments.
He said though the ED had initiated an investigation on the basis of multiple First Information Reports (FIRs) under various sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1998, it had not explained clearly when these FIRs were filed.
Employee transfers
Reiterating that the government had followed a proper system for the transfer of Tasmac employees, taking into consideration the requirements of their families and mutual transfers, and replacing erred employees with new appointments, the Minister said a total of 2,157 employees had been transferred through counselling.
He also denied irregularities in the Tasmac transport tender allocations. “Proper tenders were called for transport, and only the lowest bidders have been awarded contracts. Contracts were finalised only after verifying the KYC details and Demand Draft (DD) of the applicant and calculating the amount due to the Tasmac and the government,” he said.
Strongly denying the ED’s allegations of large-scale financial fraud involving distilleries and bottling companies and financial irregularities over ₹1,000 crore, the Minister said: “The deal was between distilleries and bottling companies, but it is unacceptable that they collected more money from the Tasmac.”
Published – March 14, 2025 02:32 pm IST
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