DMK leader seeks FIR over purchase of AI-generated books

I. Paranthaman, Joint Secretary of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) legal wing, has filed a writ petition in the Madras High Court. According to a report by The Hindu, he has sought a direction to the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) to register a First Information Report (FIR) based on his complaint regarding alleged irregularities in the purchase of books for the Periyar Arivulagam Library in Coimbatore.

In an affidavit filed through Advocate A. Damodaran, Paranthaman stated that the Tamil Nadu government envisioned Periyar Arivulagam as a major knowledge hub for students and researchers, comprising a library and a science centre. This centre was established at a total cost of ₹300 crore, of which ₹245 crore was spent on civil construction, ₹50 crore on the purchase of books, and ₹5 crore on IT infrastructure.

On November 5, 2025, the government constituted a book recommendation committee of 112 members to determine the titles of books to be purchased for the library. A meeting for the selection of books was held on January 9, 2026, and purchase orders were issued on February 2, 2026. The library was inaugurated on October 16, 2026, after which a major controversy erupted regarding the quality of the books.

Parumal Murugan, a member of the book recommendation committee and a renowned author, wrote an article on November 6, 2026. In it, he pointed out that the library is filled with "AI generated" books bearing the names of fictional authors. He further stated that these books contain incorrect historical and factual information and are priced significantly higher than other similar publications.

Paranthaman stated in his complaint that Agalvilakku Publications and Phoenix Publications appear to have supplied books created using AI tools instead of books written by actual authors. He added that the International Standard Book Numbers (ISBN) for these books seem to have been obtained in bulk blocks rather than separately for each book. He said, "This kind of output is humanly impossible and raises suspicion as to whether such authors even exist."

Paranthaman had lodged a complaint with the DVAC on November 7, 2026, but he alleged that the DVAC has neither registered an FIR nor informed him about any preliminary investigation. He urged that the DVAC immediately register a case and seize all official documents related to the book purchase so that they cannot be altered, lost, or destroyed.

Meanwhile, before a bench of Justice G.R. Swaminathan and Justice M.D. Sumathi in the Madurai bench on Tuesday (November 10, 2026), State Public Prosecutor R. John Sathyan stated that the DVAC initiated a 'detailed investigation' into the matter on November 7, 2026, based on a complaint filed by the School Education Department on November 6, 2026.

Justice Swaminathan told the State Public Prosecutor that the 'detailed investigation' prescribed under the DVAC manual could be completed as soon as possible and an FIR registered immediately. He noted that it would not take long to identify the names of government officials and other individuals responsible for the purchase of suspicious "AI generated" books for the public library by examining the records.