HC denies interim relief to ex-minister in sand excavation

Chennai: The Madras High Court on Wednesday declined to grant interim relief to former Tamil Nadu Minister E.V. Velu and his son, E.V. Kumaran, in a case involving alleged illegal sand excavation from a lake in Tiruvannamalai district. Justice V. Lakshminarayanan refused their request for an ex- parte interim stay and directed the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) to respond by November 6.

The father and son have filed separate petitions seeking to quash the FIR registered on September 24. The case concerns allegations that 45,72,058 cubic feet of sand was excavated from Malappambadi Lake to level the venue for the DMK’s north zone youth wing conference held on December 14, 2025.

Arappor Iyakkam’s Jayaram Venkatesan, who lodged the complaint, alleged that excavation across approximately eight acres of the waterbody caused a loss of Rs 8.22 crore to the public exchequer. According to the complaint, the sand was used to level land owned by a company in which Kumaran was a director.

The alleged excavation took place around November 2025. Velu, 76, currently the DMK’s whip in the Assembly, and Kumaran, 48, denied any wrongdoing. In his petition, Velu highlighted that the case was registered after the TVK government assumed office in May 2026.

He described it as the second DVAC case initiated against him following an Arappor Iyakkam complaint. He has already challenged the earlier case concerning highway works. Senior counsel Sidharth Luthra, assisted by Rahul Balaji, argued that the FIR relied on conjecture and general allegations without identifying specific acts by either petitioner.

He also questioned whether approval under Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act had been obtained, citing Velu’s ministerial tenure. Luthra maintained that the allegations, even if taken at face value, disclosed no offence and contained only sweeping claims of abuse of official position.

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