Senior police officers’ homes searched in connection with suspected irregularities in equipment procurement

Officers of the Department Vigilance and Anti-Corruption have been conducting searches across the State since Saturday morning

The residence of a police officer in Chennai where a DVAC search was conducted on Saturday morning

Officers of the Department Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) are conducting searches at more than 15 places including the home of a senior police officer M. Anbuchezhian as well as the homes of other officers, in connection with suspected irregularities in the procurement of equipment for the State Police.

Twelve teams have fanned out for the searches across the State, which have been taking place since Saturday morning.

The move comes after the State Home Department’s order of a probe against top police officials for ‘criminal misconduct’ and potential ‘pecuniary loss’ to the government on September 19 last year.

Subsequently, a preliminary internal investigation by the Deputy Inspector General (Technical Services) and Inspector General (Crime) allegedly revealed serious irregularities in the tenders floated for the purchase of CCTV cameras, Digital Mobile Radios (DMR), and the eligibility criteria set for the procurement of these products, among others. On the orders of the State government, the DVAC last year launched a probe into these alleged irregularities, reportedly worth ₹350 crore.

M. Anbuchezhian, Superintendent of Police (Technical Services), ADSP Ramesh and a few other top officials have been under the scanner for awarding contracts to one particular private company and ignoring the concerns raised by other top police officials in the department.