The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has accused the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) government in Tamil Nadu, led by chief minister MK Stalin, of spreading “baseless” rumours regarding the three-language policy, delimitation, and the removal of the rupee symbol from the state budget document to divert attention from the Enforcement Directorate (ED) raids on the Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation Limited (TASMAC) and liquor-supplying companies.
The allegations surfaced on a politically charged Monday when Tamil Nadu finance minister Thangam Thenarasu presented the state’s Budget 2025-26 in the Assembly, announcing allocations for key welfare schemes, including free bus travel for women.
However, the session saw protests from the opposition, with the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) and the BJP staging a walkout over the alleged scam.
BJP’s accusations
BJP’s IT cell head Amit Malviya directly linked the ED probe into TASMAC’s operations to the DMK’s alleged distractions.
“Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin is spreading baseless rumours about the three-language policy, NEP, delimitation, and the removal of the Rs symbol from the budget document to distract the public from the ongoing ED raids on TASMAC, the liquor minister, and liquor-supplying companies,” Malviya wrote on X.
The DMK government ignited a political row on Thursday by replacing the Devanagari rupee symbol (Rs ) with a Tamil letter in its budget logo.
Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman criticised the move, questioning why the DMK had not protested in 2010 when the Congress-led UPA government officially adopted the rupee symbol.
The BJP has further claimed that the ED’s investigations uncovered documents revealing unaccounted cash worth Rs 1,000 crore, allegedly paid as kickbacks.
“The DMK has been fleecing common people to fill its party coffers by manipulating the system, and MK Stalin owes the public an explanation regarding who received these kickbacks. Given these developments, it is becoming increasingly untenable for him to continue as Chief Minister,” Malviya added.
AIADMK, BJP demand Stalin’s resignation
Leader of Opposition and AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami escalated attacks on the Stalin-led government, demanding its resignation.
“ED has said that there has been corruption of more than Rs 1,000 crore in TASMAC. The investigation is ongoing. It is possible that there has been over Rs 40,000 crore of corruption. The DMK government should resign over this,” Palaniswami stated.
AIADMK MLAs walked out of the Assembly during the budget presentation in protest.
BJP MLA Vanathi Srinivasan also sought an official response from the state government.
“ED’s investigation into TASMAC has uncovered unaccounted cash transactions worth Rs 1,000 crore, exposing manipulated tenders and massive financial irregularities. Have written to the Hon’ble Speaker of the Tamil Nadu Assembly, urging the state government to respond under Rule 55,” she posted on X.
Excise Minister Senthil Balaji rebuts allegations
Tamil Nadu excise minister Senthil Balaji dismissed the allegations, asserting that the ED’s claims lacked substance.
“In the name of searches, the ED has conducted raids but has not even mentioned the year the FIR was registered. They have created a scene as if mistakes have happened in TASMAC recruitment,” Balaji said.
The bar tender process has been conducted online for four years. There is no room for malpractices,” Balaji added.
He further accused the BJP of manufacturing figures. “First, someone randomly claims there’s a Rs 1,000 crore scam, then ED also says the same thing. People know there is an agenda behind this. The government will fight these allegations legally,” he added.
Annamalai calls Balaji the ‘kingpin’
Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai launched a scathing attack on Balaji, labelling him the “kingpin” of the alleged scam.
“I have my sources. I believe (the corruption) is over Rs 1,000 crore. Senthil Balaji is involved in every single scam. The Supreme Court has questioned if he has the moral right to stay as a Minister,” he said.
Annamalai also accused the Stalin-led government of shielding Balaji. “The Chief Minister kept Senthil Balaji’s post warm and gave it back to him as soon as he came out of jail. He is in no position to talk about political probity.”
“I call Senthil Balaji the ‘liquor minister.’ This scam (TASMAC) is bigger than Chhattisgarh and Delhi liquor scams,” he said.
ED’s investigation and BJP’s protests
On March 6, the ED’s Chennai unit conducted search operations across multiple districts of Tamil Nadu under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, investigating alleged irregularities in TASMAC operations and its associated entities.
In an official statement, the ED confirmed, “During the search operations, various incriminating documents were recovered and seized.”
The controversy escalated on Monday when BJP Tamil Nadu chief Annamalai, BJP women’s wing national chief Vanathi Srinivasan, senior leader H Raja, and several other party leaders were detained by police in Chennai while protesting against the alleged TASMAC scam.
Following his detention, Annamalai lashed out at the DMK government. “The DMK thinks that by using the state police, it has prevented our protest against the liquor scam. But the people of Tamil Nadu know that the accused number one in this scam is CM MK Stalin. How long will you keep arresting us?” he wrote in X.
The Delhi liquor scam parallel
The political slugfest in Tamil Nadu follows a similar controversy in Delhi, where AAP leaders, including former CM Arvind Kejriwal, were jailed over their alleged role in the Delhi liquor scam, linked to the now-scrapped 2021-22 Excise Policy.
The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) reported that lapses in policy implementation led to a Rs 2,002 crore loss to the Delhi government.
With corruption allegations mounting in Tamil Nadu, the BJP is drawing parallels between the DMK and AAP cases.
The state BJP President has even claimed the Tamil Nadu liquor scam is even bigger than the Delhi case, vowing continued protests against the DMK government.
