DMK alleges BJP trying to divert attention from 'vote chori' through raids targeting Periyasamy

Enforcement Directorate carried out searches at properties liked to I Periyasamy

DMK on Saturday said that the Enforcement Directorate raids at the properties linked to its senior leader I Periyasamy are an attempt to divert public attention from "vote chori" allegations that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has been levelling against the Central government since the past few day.

DMK Organisation Secretary RS Bharathi said that the party would "neither fear the ED nor Modi". Bharathi alleged that BJP is using autonomous bodies as "election instruments" and that the party is accusing others of illegal money laundering but is running the "politics of vote chori" itself.

"The BJP stands exposed for indulging in electoral fraud by using the Election Commission. The country is shocked over this. To divert attention from the illegal vote chori, the Enforcement Directorate is conducting searches at premises linked to Periyasamy," he alleged in a statement by the DMK party.

The Enforcement Directorate on Saturday searched premises linked to Tamil Nadu Minister and DMK leader I Periyasamy and his family as part of a money laundering investigation, official sources said.

According to the sources, his MLA son, I P Senthil Kumar, is being searched too. The action is being taken under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), they said.

72-year-old Periyasamy is the minister for rural development, panchayats and panchayat unions.