NEW DELHI: Moving ahead in its probe into allegations of cheating and bribery against conman Sukesh Chandrasekhar, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has now summoned Tamil Nadu politician TTV Dhinakaran for questioning in the case.
According to top ED officials, Dhinakaran, who is the general secretary of Amma Makkal Munnettra Kazagam (AMMK), has been asked to appear before the financial probe agency on April 8 at its headquarters in Delhi.
Dhinakaran is the nephew of ousted AIADMK leader Sasikala. The AIADMK had split into two factions after the death of its supremo and Tamil Nadu Chief Ministr J Jayalalithaa in 2016.
The development comes two days after the agency sleuths questioned Chandrasekhar in a five-year-old cheating case.
As per the ED officials, in 2017, Chandrashekhar had assured Dhinakaran that he would get the AIADMK’s two-leaf symbol for his faction, Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (AMMK), if he paid Rs 50 crore.
The conman had allegedly told Dhinakaran that the Rs 50 crore would be used to bribe and influence Election Commission officials. Dhinakaran even paid around Rs 2 crore to him before the Delhi Police got wind of the conspiracy and arrested Chandrasekhar.
Later, Dhinakaran was also named as an accused in the case and arrested by the Delhi Police.
The ED last year arrested Chandrasekhar for extorting Rs 215 crore from a Delhi businessman’s wife by impersonating officials of the Home Ministry and Law Ministry.
Chandrashekar was taken into ED custody on Monday, April 4. The ED has been granted seven days’ custody of Chandrasekhar in the cheating case involving Dhinakaran.