The Enforcement Directorate (ED), on Wednesday, February 2, said that it has provisionally attached assets worth Rs 6.5 crore allegedly belonging to Tamil Nadu's Fisheries Minister Anitha R Radhakrishnan. In a tweet, the agency said, "ED has provisionally attached assets having guidance value of Rs. 6.5 Crore of Anitha R Radhakrishnan, Minister for Fisheries-Fishermen Welfare and Animal Husbandry, Govt. of Tamil Nadu and his family members under Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 in a disproportionate assets case."
ED has provisionally attached assets having guidance value of Rs. 6.5 Crore of Anitha R Radhakrishnan, Minister for Fisheries-Fishermen Welfare and Animal Husbandry, Govt. of Tamil Nadu and his family members under PMLA, 2002 in a disproportionate assets case.
— ED (@dir_ed) February 2, 2022
The ED said that a provisional order for attachment of 18 immovable properties, including 160 acres of land and residential properties worth Rs 1 crore (purchase value), "acquired by Anitha R Radhakrishnan during the check period May 14, 2001 to March 31, 2006 in the name of his family members" has been issued. The federal agency said in a statement that the action has been taken against the minister under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
Radhakrishnan is the minister for fisheries, fishermen welfare and animal husbandry. He has earlier been the minister for housing and urban development. The minister won the Assembly seat of Tiruchendur on a DMK ticket last year. Radhakrishnan had appeared before the ED in September 2021 after a disproportionate asset case was registered against him by the state Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) in 2006.
"The ED initiated money laundering investigation on the basis of an FIR registered by the directorate of vigilance and anti-corruption, Thoothukudi detachment, against Anitha R Radhakrishnan, under the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 for acquiring assets disproportionate to his known sources of income to the tune of Rs 2 crore. The guideline value of the attached properties is around Rs 6.5 crore," the agency said.