The bail hearing of former Tamil Nadu school education minister Mahesh, arrested in an alleged Rs 100 crore bribery case linked to approvals for private schools, took place before a special court in Chennai on November 5, according to Dinamalar. The hearing brought renewed attention to the alleged use of political and administrative access in the state’s private-school approval process.
Mahesh has been in Puzhal prison for 11 days. His police custody ended on November 4, after which his bail petition was heard by the Chennai special court. The case also names DMK functionaries Arasakumar and Muthukumar, who had been arrested earlier, the report said.
Arguing for bail, Mahesh’s legal team alleged that the police had altered the case narrative concerning Arasakumar. According to the defence, the case was initially recorded around allegations that Arasakumar had collected money, but the police later changed the direction of the investigation. These claims were presented as part of the bail arguments and have not been established as findings by the court.
The defence also questioned the agency handling the investigation. It argued that cases involving corruption should ordinarily be investigated by the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption, but that the Central Crime Branch had registered the case, which the lawyers said had created confusion over the investigation.
The defence further claimed that Arasakumar had collected money by falsely telling people that bribes had to be paid to government officials and politicians. The lawyers told the court that all documents sought by the police had been handed over and that Mahesh had answered the questions asked during the investigation.
On those grounds, the defence sought bail, saying that Mahesh was cooperating with the investigation and that continued custody was not necessary. The report did not provide the prosecution’s full response to the bail request or state whether the court passed an order on the petition on November 5.
The allegations place the regulatory system for private-school approvals at the centre of the case. Such approvals involve interactions between school managements, education authorities and other government offices. The court proceedings will determine how the alleged money collection was organised, who was involved and whether the former minister had any role in the alleged transactions. The next development will be the special court’s decision on the bail petition and further directions in the investigation.
