Amid allegations that a large sum was collected in the name of party funds, the Chennai High Court has ordered the dismissal of the anticipatory bail petition filed on his behalf, stating that it cannot be determined who received the amount without questioning former minister Anbil Mahesh.
The hearing on the petition filed by former minister Anbil Mahesh in the Chennai High Court seeking anticipatory bail in the case filed alleging that he had received Rs. 100 crore from private schools and committed irregularities had concluded, and the verdict was reserved without specifying a date.
Details of the verdict delivered by Judge V. Lakshminarayanan on Monday in this case: In the matter of collecting money from private school administrators in the name of party funds, the police have alleged that former minister Anbil Mahesh directly interacted with the witnesses. In this case, in which 177 school administrators have been affected, Muthukumar, who has been named as a key person, is absconding.
In the inquiry conducted with his relatives, it was found that he is under Anbil Mahesh’s control. This will affect the investigation. If anticipatory bail is granted at the initial stage of investigations into financial crime cases, it will hamper the probe. In corruption cases, the Supreme Court has ruled that it is necessary to keep the concerned persons in custody and interrogate them in order to uncover the truth about money transfers and indirect links.
Therefore, since he cooperated with the investigation, he cannot claim a right to anticipatory bail. The court believes there is basis for the allegation that Anbil Mahesh is protecting Muthukumar. There is also basis for the suspicion that, by using the freedom of anticipatory bail, he may tamper with witnesses and obstruct the investigation.
Corruption is a major economic offense. It is a crime that not only affects the state treasury but also directly impacts human rights. If anticipatory bail is granted to Anbil Mahesh in this case, the investigation will be stalled.
If anticipatory bail is granted to Anbil Mahesh before Muthukumar is arrested, it would give Muthukumar a reason to evade the investigation. Therefore, there is currently no reason to grant anticipatory bail to Anbil Mahesh. In a situation where allegations have been made that a large sum of money was collected in the name of party funds, it cannot be determined without questioning Anbil Mahesh who that amount reached.
Anbil Mahesh is not an ordinary person. He is a politically influential person who has held a high office. Since the investigation is at an early stage and new information has been discovered, anticipatory bail cannot be granted to Anbil Mahesh, the judge noted in the verdict while dismissing his petition.
