Madras High Court denies Anbil Mahesh anticipatory bail in Rs 400 crore case

The Madras High Court dismissed Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi's anticipatory bail plea in the corruption case. It said custodial questioning was essential to trace the alleged Rs 400 crore money trail.Stock photo used for illustrationChennai,Oct 26, 2026 21:44 ISTThe Madras High Court on Monday dismissed former DMK minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi's anticipatory bail plea in a corruption case, ruling that custodial interrogation was necessary to trace money allegedly collected from school managements as a "party fund", news agency Press Trust of India reported.The prosecution said the FIR initially referred to a few crores of rupees, but the investigation had so far indicated that about Rs 400 crore was collected. It alleged that the money was taken from private school managements in return for securing permanent recognition, upgrades and statutory approvals.Justice V Lakshminarayanan said corruption was a grave economic offence that affected not only the public exchequer but also human rights. The court must also consider the position held by the petitioner and his ability to interfere with state machinery or influence witnesses, he said.Mahesh's senior counsel argued that he had cooperated with the police investigation, three premises had been searched and documents seized. "The petitioner is not a flight risk... finally, in cases like these, which are borne out on records, no custodial interrogation is essential," the counsel submitted. The state opposed the plea, saying the investigation was at an early stage and efforts were under way to trace the money trail. It argued that custodial interrogation was required to uncover the alleged conspiracy and establish the facts.The court rejected the defence argument that custody was unnecessary because the evidence was documentary. "Money trails would still require custodial interrogation in order to establish the intent and identify who had been holding the strings and the final destination of the amount alleged to be involved," the order said. The judge said granting anticipatory bail would hinder the investigation. While protecting individual liberty was a duty of the court, it had to be weighed against society's need for corruption-free government administration, the order said.According to PTI, records showed that 177 alleged victims had come forward to record their statements. The court noted that Mahesh was a politician who had held a high position and said granting him anticipatory bail before the arrest of the second accused could help that accused avoid the investigation.The High Court had earlier rejected the bail plea of another accused, Muthukumar, identified as A2, after finding that the allegations required custodial interrogation. Justice Lakshminarayanan said there was no reason to take a different view in Mahesh's case. "The gravity of the offence is an essential condition which the court has to consider. Higher the gravity, more the difficulty for a person to get anticipatory bail," he said.The court also said Mahesh's cooperation with questioning so far was not sufficient ground to grant anticipatory bail because he was accused of receiving money as a "party fund". "As to who is the final destination of this alleged 'party fund' cannot be unearthed unless and until the petitioner is interrogated," the order said.It added: "As the investigation is still at its nascent stage and as new facts are being unearthed, this court is of the view that grant of anticipatory bail would not be fit and proper. In the light of the above discussions, the petition stands dismissed."The case was registered after D C Elangovan complained that large sums had been collected. The alleged offences include cheating and criminal breach of trust under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. The prosecution said the money was collected to secure permanent recognition, upgrades and statutory approvals for private schools in the state.B T Arasa Kumar, identified as A1, Raju, identified as A3, and Suresh, identified as A4, have been arrested, while Muthukumar is absconding. Investigators claimed that Mahesh had links with the accused.Witnesses were examined and their statements recorded, while digital, official and other government records were collected and investigated. The prosecution alleged that Mahesh directly interacted with some witnesses and collected money from school managements on the ground that it was meant for the "party fund".It further alleged that Mahesh assured the school managements that government orders meeting their demands would be issued after payment of the fund. Following these findings, the police filed an alteration report to add Sections 7 and 12 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, as amended in 2018. The former minister was subsequently questioned for more than eight hours and his responses were recorded.The state also alleged that Mahesh was shielding the absconding accused, Muthukumar, from law enforcement and was therefore obstructing the investigation. The police said they intended to question Mahesh in Muthukumar's presence.Dismissing the plea, the High Court concluded that the scale of the alleged collections, the unresolved money trail, the number of statements recorded and the need to question Mahesh about the alleged "party fund" required custodial interrogation at this stage of the investigation.- Ends