New Delhi/Chennai, April 17 (PTI): The Delhi Police on Monday booked AIADMK (Amma) leader TTV Dhinakaran for allegedly trying to bribe an Election Commission official in a failed bid to obtain the coveted “two-leaves” party symbol for his faction.
Police lodged an FIR against Dhinakaran soon after arresting an alleged middleman who, according to police, was purportedly helping the AIADMK leader reach out to an unidentified official in the Election Commission in return for an astounding Rs. 50 crore.
No arrest warrant has been issued against Dhinakaran. But police have in their custody Sukesh Chandrasekhar, the alleged middleman who was picked from a 5-star hotel in New Delhi on Sunday, a senior police official said.
The developments add to the woes of the AIADMK (Amma) faction, whose leader VK Sasikala _ Dhinakaran’s aunt _ is in a Bengaluru jail in an disproportionate assets case. Tamil Nadu is rife with specultation that the Amma faction could merge with the rival Panneerselvam camp after dumping Sasikala and her nephew.
Both, Sasikala’s Amma faction and its rival, the Panneerselvam camp, staked claim to the party’s two-leaves symbol because it represented Jayalalithaa’s powerful legacy. But the Election Commission froze the symbol and asked the two factions to choose other symbols.
Police said Chandrasekhar had allegedly told Dhinakaran that he has contacts in the Election Commission who could help the Sasikala faction get the two-leaves symbol.
“It has been learnt that Sukesh had struck a deal for Rs 50 crore for helping the AIADMK faction to keep the ‘two leaves’ symbol,” a senior police officer said.
He said the middleman had got Rs 10 crore of the deal amount and “the remaining amount was to be given to him in a time-bound manner.”
Police have recovered Rs 1.30 crore from Chandrasekhar, along with two cars -- a BMW and a Mercedes.
Dhinakaran also denied trying to bribe anybody and said he does not know Chandrasekhar.
Delhi police said a team may visit Chennai to question Dhinakaran.
Dhinakaran said he had not received any summons or communication from the Delhi Police. He also denied reports that there was a revolt against him by some ministers in Tamil Nadu. He reiterated that no minister had asked him to step down, and denied he was meeting Sasikala to apprise her of a “rift” in the party.
Chandrashekhar, the alleged middleman, is an accused in several cheating cases and is known as a “flamboyant conman having a fetish for luxury cars,” according to police. Police got on Chadrashekhar’s trail after they received a tip-off from an informer about certain Election Commission officials being approached.
Police also claim to have recordings of phone conversations between Dhinakaran and Chandrashekhar, police sources said, adding that some money was also paid in Kochi.
