Gutkha scam: CBI takes suspect to sealed godown

Madhava Rao, who is currently in the CBI custody, was taken to the premises around 11 am and brought back to the CBI office in Nungambakkam in the evening. The officers unearthed bank account details of a few suspects during the search, said CBI sources, adding that the entire searching operation was videographed.

CBI got the custody of Madhava Rao, Srinivasa Rao and Uma Shankar Gupta, promoters of Annamalai Industries, along with Dr P Senthil Murugan of State Food Safety and Drug Administration Department, and NK Pandian, a superintendent of Central Excise department, for four days on Monday.

Two police officers, DSP Mannar Mannan and inspector Sampath Kumar, who were summoned by the CBI for questioning are yet to appear before the investigators. They might appear on Thursday, sources said.

A CBI team from Delhi had conducted searches in the houses of both the police officers, apart from the residences of State Health Minister C Vijaya Baskar, State police chief TK Rajendran and retired DGP S George, who is a former Chennai Police Commissioner, in connection with the investigation into the scam.