NDA's Sivaganga LS candidate Devanathan arrested by EOW for cheating investors

CHENNAI: India Makkal Kalvi Munnedra Kazhagam founder and Win TV owner T Devanathan Yadav, who contested unsuccessfully in the recent Lok Sabha polls from Sivaganga under BJP ticket, was arrested on Tuesday on charges of cheating depositors money to the tune of Rs 50 crore.

Apart from being a politician, Devanathan is the Chairman and Managing Director of the 147-year-old Mylapore Hindu Permanent Fund Nidhi Limited through which he invited deposits with a promise of higher interest rates.

More than 140 persons had deposited money to the tune of Rs 50 crore, but Devanathan failed to release the interests and returns on the deposits promptly. When the depositors demanded their money back, Devanathan could not give assurance and so they lodged a complaint with the Economic Offences Wing, Chennai. Few months ago, some of the depositors protested outside the firm’s head office, but were pacified and sent after promises. Based on their complaint, Economic Offences Wing registered a case and commenced a search for Devanathan Yadav as he escaped from the spot.

On Tuesday, the Chennai EOW received information that he was in Tiruchy and so the team reached Tiruchy and arrested him. Subsequently, he was taken to the EOW office at Kalamalai in Tiruchy and interrogated. Later in the evening, he was shifted to Chennai.

BJP allies targeted: Annamalai

Reacting to Devanathan’s arrest, BJP state president K Annamalai took to social media and said that while his party is committed to ensuring justice for all investors and sought for a thorough investigation, he wondered if BJP’s allies are being targeted. “If this (the arrest) is one of the attempts to threaten the NDA parties, who are pointing out to law and order and administrative failure of the DMK government, I strongly condemn it,” he stated.