A case has been registered against DMK Rajya Sabha MP S. Kalyanasundaram and three others in connection with the ongoing dispute over the Kumbakonam Mutual Benefit Fund Nidhi Limited election, following a complaint by a TVK woman functionary. One of the accused, Velappan, has reportedly been arrested and produced before a court, as per a Vikatan report.
The case comes amid a confrontation between the ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) and the DMK over the election, in which DMK-backed candidates were declared winners after the nominations of several TVK candidates were rejected.
The dispute has now escalated further, with trainee employees of the financial institution alleging that they were confined by officials and police and pressured to submit written statements supporting the ruling party’s position.
The institution had earlier been headed by DMK Rajya Sabha MP Kalyanasundaram as chairman. Former DMK MLA Anbalagan was a director, Velappan served as managing director and Ravichandran as additional director. Their terms expired, leading to an election for the various posts between September 27 and 30 through e-voting.
The TVK side had sought to contest the election, with party city secretary Muruganandam, district treasurer Vijay Chandran, district women’s wing organiser Anjana, Sridevi and city student wing president Sandesh among those contesting.
However, their nominations were rejected after they submitted their applications in person rather than online, as required under the revised e-voting procedure. The DMK-backed candidates, including Kalyanasundaram and Anbalagan, were subsequently declared elected.
TVK functionaries led by Muruganandam then staged a protest at the institution, alleging irregularities in the e-voting process and demanding that the election be cancelled.
It was against this backdrop that a TVK woman functionary filed a complaint resulting in the case against Kalyanasundaram and the three others.
The controversy took another turn when trainee employees alleged that police subsequently pressured them to provide statements concerning the election.
According to the trainees, 72 newly recruited employees from branches across Tamil Nadu had been undergoing 15 days of training at the Kumbakonam headquarters from September 16 to 30.
They alleged that on the final day, officials and police took them into a separate room, shut the door and kept them there for several hours. They claimed they were not initially provided food or drinking water and were released only after 11 pm.
The trainees further alleged that they were warned not to disclose what had happened and were told to return to their respective branches.
They claimed that 15 of the 72 trainees who had voted through the e-voting system were pressured to submit written statements. They also alleged that they were asked to state that they had obtained their jobs by paying money and were threatened with losing their employment if they refused.
The trainees alleged that East Police Station Inspector Ilayaraja Atmanathan acted on instructions conveyed by a key individual over the phone.
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