Cops plan to issue fresh summons to Senthil Balaji, brother

Chennai, Jul 6 (PTI) Chennai police is planning to issue fresh summons to former minister V Senthil Balaji and his brother, V Ashok Kumar, after they failed to appear before investigators on Monday in connection with an alleged Rs 35-crore bid to poach a TVK MLA, a police official said. Triplicane police had issued summons directing both men to appear for questioning on Monday. Following their non-appearance, authorities are now planning to issue fresh summons. According to the police official, if the duo continues to remain absent despite repeated notices, further legal action -- including seeking appropriate court orders for their formal arrest -- will be initiated. Meanwhile, V Ashok Kumar has moved the Madras High Court seeking anticipatory bail. The court adjourned the matter to Monday after directing the police to file their formal response. The case stems from a complaint lodged by N Elaiyaraja, an MLA of the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), who alleged that he was offered Rs 35 crore to switch political allegiance and help topple the state government led by TVK president C Joseph Vijay. As part of the ongoing investigation, the police have arrested nine persons so far. The arrested individuals include YouTubers Thirunavukkarasu, Thiagarajan of Medavakkam, Naresh of Tiruchi, and Ramesh and Karthik of Karur. Investigators are currently examining the alleged conspiracy, looking closely into political links, financial transactions, and the specific roles of those involved. Although Balaji was not initially named as an accused in the First Information Report (FIR), the Triplicane police issued summons to him and his brother. Police officers visited the family’s residence at Ramaiyanpetti village near Karur and served the summons to his parents after the brothers could not be located. Over the past five days, multiple police teams have conducted extensive searches at residences and farmhouses linked to the brothers and their associates in Karur, Tiruchi, Bengaluru, Chennai, and Coimbatore. Investigators stated that the brothers could not be traced during the operations. To prevent Balaji and Kumar from leaving the country, investigators have already issued Look Out Circulars (LoCs) to immigration authorities at all airports across the country, officials added. PTI JR JR ADB