On Tuesday (April 3rd), the Madras High Court issued a directive to the Tamil Nadu government, instructing them to submit a status report regarding the investigation progress into accusations of fund misappropriation intended for housing the impoverished under both the Central government’s Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY-G) and the State’s Chief Minister Solar Powered Green Housing Scheme.
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Chennai: The Madras High Court on Tuesday directed the Tamil Nadu government to furnish a detailed status report on the ongoing investigation regarding allegations of misappropriation of funds designated for housing the impoverished. These funds were intended for utilization under both the Central government’s Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY-G) and the State’s own Chief Minister Solar Powered Green Housing Scheme.
A bench comprising Chief Justice SV Gangapurwala and Justice Sathya Narayana Prasad presided over the hearing of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) petition lodged by one ML Dhamodharan. The petition sought directives to the State Revenue Department officials to take action on Dhamodharan’s complaint, alleging irregularities in the allocation of houses and solar panels to individuals below the poverty line in Tamil Nadu, under the aforementioned schemes.
In his PIL, Dhamodharan asserted that responses to his queries under the Right to Information Act (RTI Act) have confirmed the misappropriation of approximately Rs 54,40,000 worth of government subsidy funds. These funds were designated for various welfare schemes, including PMAY-G, the Chief Minister’s Solar Powered Green Housing Scheme, and the State’s Flood Relief Housing Scheme.
During Tuesday’s proceedings, Dhamodharan informed the Court that certain officials had embezzled the funds by allocating houses to “non-existent persons and to persons above the poverty line.” He highlighted that he had lodged a written complaint with Revenue Department authorities in December of the previous year, but no action had been initiated thus far.
Responding to this, the Court questioned the State government’s stance, expressing dismay over the lack of action on Dhamodharan’s complaint. The Court remarked,
“What is this? Your (State) officers are making merry by misappropriating government funds and you are waiting for someone to file an RTI application and come to Court to seek action.”
In response to the Court’s queries, the State government acknowledged that the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) was already investigating some related complaints. According to the state’s representation, 25 witnesses have been examined thus far, with eight witnesses remaining to be examined in the case.
Consequently, the Court instructed the Additional Public Prosecutor to file a comprehensive status report on the investigation by April 23, 2024.
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