PMO approves action against two IAS officers in Tamil Nadu

The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has granted permission to take action against two IAS officers involved in a ₹98.25 crore corporation tender irregularity case in Tamil Nadu, the Madras High Court was informed on Thursday (12 November, 2026). According to a report by The Hindu, the action will be taken against two IAS officers named K.S. Kandasamy and K. Vijay Karthikeyan under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. The scam is primarily registered against former AIADMK minister S.P. Velumani.

This information was presented in court by Additional Solicitor General A.R.L. Sundaresan, who was assisted by senior panel counsel to the Central Government, V. Chandrasekar. The submission was noted by Justice N. Anand Venkatesh, who subsequently directed the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) to proceed with filing charge sheets against all long-pending accused in this corruption case.

Speaking on the lengthy process of obtaining permission to act against IAS officers in this case, the Justice stated that after Jayaram Venkatesan, on behalf of the applicant Arappor Iyakkam, filed a contempt petition against DVAC officials in 2025, this is a classic example of how many efforts must be made to obtain permission to act against IAS officers in criminal cases. The Justice further remarked sarcastically that the wheels of law enforcement turn swiftly against the poor, but these wheels rarely turn against the influential.

Last year, the Justice had issued series of directions to the State Government to send files to the Central Government and had impleaded the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) in New Delhi as an independent party to expedite the approval process. On Thursday, when the ASG produced a copy of the approval order in court, the Justice ordered the removal of DoPT from the list of respondents, as it was no longer a necessary party in the contempt proceedings. The Justice decided to keep the contempt petition pending solely for the purpose of monitoring further progress made by the DVAC.

The contempt petition, filed by Arappor Iyakkam through their lawyer V. Suresh, stated that their complaint pertains to irregularities in civil contracts awarded to the Greater Chennai and Coimbatore Municipal Corporations between 2014 and 2018. During this period, Mr. Velumani was serving as the Minister for Municipal Administration and Water Supply under the AIADMK regime.

Based on this complaint, the DVAC registered the first First Information Report (FIR) in 2021 and completed the investigation a few years later. On 12 February, 2024, the then Speaker of the Tamil Nadu Assembly, M. Appavu, had granted permission to take action against Mr. Velumani. However, due to the delay in obtaining permission to act against the two IAS officers, Arappor Iyakkam had filed a contempt petition last year.

Following continuous pressure from the High Court, the Tamil Nadu government had sent its proposal for approval to the DoPT with voluminous documents, which had to be translated from Tamil to English. Subsequently, on 16 September, 2026, DoPT Joint Secretary Sushil Kumar Patel informed Justice Venkatesh that the PMO is the competent authority to grant permission to act against IAS officers. He also stated that the DoPT has sent the files to the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) for its comments and will forward the files to the PMO after receiving the CVC's comments. At that time, the officer had assured the court that the entire process of obtaining permission would be completed within two months.

AIADMK is a major political party operating in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. The party is primarily active in South India and has played a significant role in the state's politics.