DVAC Raids Velachery and 34 Other Taluk Offices, Seizes Lakhs in Unaccounted Cash

The Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) on Friday conducted a raid at the Velachery taluk office in Chennai as part of a major statewide crackdown against bribery and the collection of unaccounted money. The local operation was part of simultaneous searches carried out across 35 taluk offices throughout Tamil Nadu, which led to the seizure of ₹13.78 lakh in cash and the identification of unaccounted online transactions worth ₹68.32 lakh.

In Chennai, the anti-corruption officials targeted multiple locations, executing inspections at taluk offices in both Velachery and Perambur. Similar surprise checks were conducted in other districts, including Cuddalore and Chidambaram, as authorities cracked down on suspected financial irregularities.

The statewide operation revealed various instances of unaccounted cash hidden within government premises. During a raid at the Thiruvarur taluk office, DVAC officials seized ₹43,000 in unaccounted cash along with several documents for further examination. The search in Thiruvarur faced a brief disruption when a power outage occurred, forcing officials to continue their inspection using the lights of their mobile phones.

In Mayiladuthurai district, the raid at the Sirkazhi taluk office led to the recovery of ₹42,750. According to officials, this cash was recovered directly from a tahsildar, his driver, and two village administrative officers (VAOs).

Further south, anti-corruption officials in Madurai district seized ₹34,000 during an inspection at the Thirumangalam taluk office. Meanwhile, searches conducted at Vettiyankovil in the Tirunelveli district yielded ₹32,200 in unaccounted cash, and an inspection at the Tenkasi taluk office resulted in the recovery of ₹15,000.

In addition to physical cash seizures, the DVAC focused on digital footprints, identifying a total of ₹68.32 lakh in online transactions that were yet to be accounted for. The investigations revealed that the highest value of these suspicious online transactions occurred in Karur, where ₹16.33 lakh was received. This was followed by Trichy, where officials detected ₹12.4 lakh in unaccounted online transactions.