Police have arrested another accused in connection with the alleged fraudulent transfer and mortgaging of property belonging to a trust associated with the Madurai Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple. The City Crime Branch-III of Madurai city police arrested B Kalikumar (41), a resident of Sirumalai in Dindigul district, on Friday. With his arrest, the total number of people arrested in the case has risen to four. Investigators are now examining Kalikumar’s alleged role in the manipulation of documents related to the trust property and his involvement in the process through which the property was mortgaged in 2021.
According to police, Kalikumar was one of three persons in whose favour S Ilaiyaraja and P Anish registered a mortgage deed in 2021. Ilaiyaraja’s wife Kavitha and R Prakash were the other two parties to the document. Investigators are examining what the accused knew about the property and the nature of their alleged involvement in the transaction.
Police had earlier arrested S Ilaiyaraja (43), described as the alleged key accused in the case, K Anbalagan (59), the then Madurai North tahsildar, and V Rajkumar (63). Ilaiyaraja is alleged to have played a central role in the process. Anbalagan has been accused of being involved in the transfer of the property in 2016 in the names of nine people. Rajkumar was among those nine persons in whose names the property was allegedly transferred.
The case stems from an alleged fraudulent transfer carried out in 2016. Police have registered a case against 19 people, including former and serving government officials and private individuals. According to the investigation, the disputed property measures 1.79 acres and belongs to the Pudukkottai Rajakumarar Dakshinamoorthy Durairaja Durairani Trust. The trust property was endowed for the benefit of the Madurai Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple.
Police allege that the property was transferred in the names of nine people in 2016. The transfer was subsequently cancelled. However, investigators allege that the cancellation was concealed and further documentation was executed despite the earlier transfer having been annulled. As part of the subsequent process, a power of attorney was executed in favour of two persons in 2021 and registered at the Murappanadu Sub-Registrar Office in Thoothukudi district.
Later that year, the two persons allegedly registered a mortgage deed in favour of three individuals. Police suspect that documents were used to assert rights over the property and subsequently mortgage it despite the earlier transfer having been cancelled. Investigators are examining the role of government officials, the registration process and the validity of the documents involved in the transactions.
The police are questioning the arrested accused to determine when and how the alleged plan to transfer the trust property was formulated. Investigators are also examining the links between the nine people whose names appeared in the 2016 transfer documents and those who were involved in the power of attorney and mortgage deed executed in 2021.
The investigation is also focused on the original records relating to the trust property to determine whether any changes, incorrect entries or other irregularities were allegedly introduced into the records. The role of officials associated with the relevant registration and revenue offices is also being examined.
Police said the investigation into the remaining accused named in the case is continuing. Further arrests could follow depending on the findings from the examination of documents and the questioning of those already arrested.
