"Take action against the MP who attended an event organized by the complainant’s company in a way that tarnishes the DMK government," is the complaint being sent to the leadership by DMK members in Dharmapuri district, causing a stir.
In Dharmapuri district, the DMK members are seething after learning that Dharmapuri MP and East District DMK secretary A. Mani took part in the opening ceremony of the new petrol bunk of the well-known TNC Group. Party functionaries are sharply criticizing him in WhatsApp groups.
'Is it a crime for an MP to attend a private company event? Why the harsh criticism?' When this question arose, we asked DMK functionaries in Dharmapuri district about it. They said, "Who is the person inviting us to an event? Even ordinary people would check their background. In that case, someone who holds a district-level post in a major party and is also a Member of Parliament would not attend an event if the people associated with it are against the party they belong to.
In such a situation, the petrol bunk inauguration attended by Dharmapuri MP Mani cannot be taken lightly. Our concern is that this was an event organized by the company of the complainant in the case that tarnished the previous DMK government and is now the reason former minister Anbil Mahesh was arrested.
The well-known DNC Group in Dharmapuri runs educational institutions along with various businesses, including chit funds. D.C. Ilangovan and D.C. Manivannan are the directors of these companies. Among them, this D.C. Ilangovan serves as the general secretary of the 'Tamil Nadu Private Schools Structure,' which functioned under the leadership of P.T. Arasakumar.
After the TVK came to power, on behalf of the Tamil Nadu Private Schools Association Federation, T.C. Ilangovan filed a police complaint saying, "During the DMK regime, for things like renewal of recognition, building permission, and upgradation of private schools, we collected money from many schools through P.T. Arasakumar and Muthukumar and paid more than Rs 100 crore in bribes to the then School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh, but nothing happened, and the money was not returned either."
Following that, P.T. Arasakumar, who was serving as both a DMK spokesperson and the head of the private schools association structure, was arrested. Muthukumar had gone into hiding and has only now surrendered. The TVK government has been damaging the DMK’s image using this complaint and has now also arrested Anbil Mahesh. Following that, some people have also been spreading various slanders in the media. DMK workers have seen all this and are deeply distressed.
When even an ordinary party worker knows that this issue is bringing disrepute to the DMK, wouldn’t someone who is both a district secretary and an MP know it too?
He knows it, but for him, the T.N.C. group is more important than the stain that has come upon the party. Ask anyone in Dharmapuri about the connection between him and that group, and they will tell you.
Whether the AIADMK or the DMK comes to power, the TNC group keeps a few public representatives on hand to serve its interests. It was through that influence that Mani, who had publicized the donation of 10 acres of land in that area for the construction of a new bus stand during the AIADMK regime in order to increase the value of their own 200-acre land in the suburban area of Dharmapuri, got the then ministers E.V. Velu and M.R.K. Panneerselvam to set up a new bus stand in that area under the “public-private partnership” scheme during the DMK regime, the first of its kind in Tamil Nadu, at a cost of Rs 40 crore, with the arrangement that they themselves would manage it for 25 years.
The people of Dharmapuri district are suffering greatly because of the new bus stand. That is also one of the reasons the DMK did not win even a single constituency in the district in the last election. But the value of the 200-acre land owned by the TNC company has increased tenfold. Former ministers Velu, Panneerselvam, and MP Mani are the reason for this.
Not only that, but in Dharmapuri district, where the DMK already had no MLA, Mani was also the one who prevented the right people from being allotted tickets in this election as well, instead allocating them to alliance partners and causing the defeat. That is why, at the review meeting held after the election, there were incidents in which party functionaries argued against Mani. Along with keeping the party in this condition in the Dharmapuri East district, he has been closely associated with the administrator of the private schools association, who was responsible for the case that created pressure on the party. Members of other parties are also mocking this, so the party should take action against him," they said.
When asked about this, district secretary and Dharmapuri MP A. Mani said, "I participated on the invitation of Indian Oil Corporation in my capacity as a Member of Parliament. I do not know why this is being made into such a big issue; I have many more important tasks than this," and ended the matter.